Prevalence and predictors of burnout among nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic: A survey in teaching hospitals¹

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Raei, Mehdi^a | Shahrbaf, Mohammad Amin^b | Salaree, Mohammad Mehdi^c | Yaghoubi, Maryam^d | Parandeh, Akram^{e; *}

Affiliations: [a] Health Research Center, Life Style Institute, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran | [b] Faculty of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran | [c] Department of Military Nursing, Nursing Faculty, Health Research Center, Life Style Institute, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran | [d] Health Management Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran | [e] Department of Community Health, Nursing Faculty, Quran and Hadith Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Correspondence: [*] Address for correspondence: Akram Parandeh, Department of Community Health, Nursing Faculty, Quran and Hadith Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. E-mails: [email protected]; [email protected]. ORCID ID: 0000-0002-3054-1938.

Note: [1] This article received a correction notice (Erratum) with the reference 10.3233/WOR-246013, available at http://doi.org/10.3233/WOR-246013.

Abstract: BACKGROUND:Occupational burnout is one of the most important consequences of the coronavirus disease pandemic, associated with psychological well-being, quality of care, and intention to leave the nursing profession. This is a major health problem with serious adverse consequences not only for nurses but also for patients and healthcare systems. OBJECTIVE:To assess burnout and its associated factors in nurses who worked in teaching hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran. METHODS:A cross-sectional study was conducted on nurses of two COVID-19 referral hospitals in Tehran, Iran. Data were collected using the sociodemographic form and Maslach burnout inventory-human service survey (MBI-HSS) questionnaire. Data were evaluated using SPSS software version 26. RESULTS:A total of 264 participants, 52.7% (n = 139) were males and the mean of them age was 34.41±9.71 years. Almost 50% of nurses experienced burnout, in each dimension. Emotional exhaustion was associated significantly with job retention intention (P = 0.01) and depersonalization was significantly associated with gender (P = 0.02), age (P = 0.01), educational level (P = 0.004), work shifts (P = 0.006), and job retention intention (P = 0.02). In addition, personal accomplishment score was significantly associated with age (P = 0.002), marital status (P = 0.03), educational level (P = 0.03), work shift (P = 0.04) and job retention intention (P = 0.01). CONCLUSION:The burnout rate in the COVID-19 era is high among nurses associated with improper care. Psychosocial support is needed to improve mental well-being among health care workers during unpredictable conditions like pandemics.

Keywords: Burnout, psychological, professional, COVID-19, nurses, prevalence

DOI: 10.3233/WOR-220001

Journal: Work, vol. 77, no. 4, pp. 1049-1057, 2024