Prevalence of the Burnout Syndrome and associated factors in intensivist physical therapists

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Studies on burnout syndrome in intensivist physical therapists are rare and many of these professionals are unaware of this syndrome. OBJECTIVE: To estimate the prevalence and associated factors of professional burnout syndrome in physical therapists working in adult, pediatric and neonatal intensive care units in the state of Bahia, Brazil. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out in a group of 60 physical therapists working in intensive care in the city of Feira de Santana, Bahia, Brazil. A self-administered questionnaire assessed sociodemographic data, work characteristics, and burnout syndrome was assessed using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). RESULTS: 51.7% worked in adult ICU, 20.0% in pediatric ICU and 28.3% in neonatal ICU; in addition, several professionals worked in two or more units. The mean age was 32.2 ± 4.9 years, 80,0% were female and 20.0% male, 55.0% were single, 45.0% had a partner, 58.3% had no children and 41.7% had children. The prevalence of burnout syndrome was 33.3%, considered a high level in at least one of the three dimensions of the MBI. CONCLUSION: We observed a high prevalence of burnout syndrome among the intensivist physical therapists studied. The results support further investigation of the working conditions and other factors that might be associated with this high prevalence.