Burnout syndrome among healthcare workers employed in intensive care units: Experiences from three large university hospitals in the Southeast Balkans: Burnout syndrome among healthcare workers of intensive care units in the Southeast Balkans

Abstract

Summary Introduction: Burnout syndrome at work is a response to chronic emotional and interpersonal stressors associated with the workplace, and occurs in workers without previous psychopathological illnesses or organic diseases. Aim: The aim of the research was to examine the prevalence of stress and burnout syndrome, among physicians and nurses working in the intensive care units (MICU) of 3 regional centers (Banja Luka, Novi Sad and Ljubljana), and to determine the differences between the centers and the causes of these differences. Methods: It is a cross-sectional study conducted during August and September 2020 (at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic) by surveying healthcare workers (doctors and nurses/technicians) from three intensive care units of the former Yugoslavia. The participantsfulfilled the Questionnaire for self-assessment of stress levels and the Maslach burnout inventory, which were supplemented with sociodemographic parameters. The obtained data were statistically processed using the SPSS 21 program. Results: 91 participantsfrom all 3 regional centers were included in th study. A statistically significant difference was found in terms of age, degree of professional education, length of service, gender, marital and parental status, where respondents from Ljubljana show the greatest deviations comparedto subjects from the other two centers. The sociodemographic characteristics of the respondents only showed that gender had a statistically significant influence on the degree of personal achievement. Conclusion: The attributes of healthcare professionals who work in MICUs with the same level of life support (level III) may be influenced by the development level and length of tradition of intensive care units. Additionally, factors such as legislation and other external and internal elements unique to each organizational unit can also play a role.