Journal of Community Medicine & Health Education
Open Access

Abstract

Statement of the Problem: Burnout is a psychological condition of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and reduced personal accomplishment in people persistently exposed to emotional and interpersonal stressors at work. Postgraduate doctors who simultaneously engage in patient management, knowledge gathering, skill development and exam preparation, are prone to burnout, resulting from chronic stress at work. Situation of burnout in Sri Lankan postgraduate doctors is unknown. This study determines prevalence of burnout and factors associated with it, among postgraduate doctors in Colombo district. Methodology & Theoretical Orientation: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among all 278 postgraduate doctors from eight specialties attached to Postgraduate Institute of Medicine and working in Colombo district. Final sample size was 245. A Self-administered questionnaire, comprising Copenhagen Burnout Inventory and associated factors was used. Data collected from 01.08.2017 to 31.08.2017. Associations were analyzed using univariate cross-tabulations followed by multiple logistic regressions. Findings: Response rate 88.1%. Prevalence of personal, work-related and client-related burnout were 41.6% (95%CI, 35.5– 47.8%), 30.6% (95%CI, 24.8–36.4%), 8.9% (95%CI, 5.4–12.5%) respectively. Females (OR=3.58,p<0.001), chronic disease (OR=4.01,p=0.007), frequent unhealthy habits (OR=3.33,p=0.001), parents being doctors (OR=2.77,p=0.028), home– work demands (OR=2.86,p=0.008), emotional demands (OR=3.43,p=0.001) associated positively and frequent healthy habits (OR=0.25,p<0.001), satisfaction with skill development opportunities (OR=0.44,p=0.019), frequent deep studying (OR=0.21,p<0.001) associated negatively with personal burnout. Females (OR=3.59,p<0.001), frequent unhealthy habits (OR=2.81,p=0.005), home–work demands (OR=5.54,p<0.001), emotional demands (OR=3.99,p<0.001) associated positively and frequent deep studying (OR=0.44,p=0.028) associated negatively with work-related burnout.Emotional demands (OR=4.01, p=0.005) associated positively and overall specialty training satisfaction (OR=0.20, p=0.001) associated negatively with client-related burnout. Conclusion & Significance: Postgraduate doctors in Colombo have high personal and work-related burnout prevalence and low client-related burnout prevalence. Several personal, family, work and training factors are associated with burnout. Improving awareness and preventive actions from beginning and throughout training is recommended by incorporating a training module on personal development with emphasis on burnout prevention.

Biography

Minuri Fernando is a medical officer who has a MSc in Community Medicine obtained from the Postgraduate Institute of Medicine, University of Colombo. Burnout among postgraduate doctors in Colombo is her first research, which was done for her MSc in the year 2016. She has research interest in occupational health and malaria. Currently she is attached to a research on knowledge, attitude and practices among malaria high risk groups in Sri Lanka.
Email:minuri30@gmail.com