Burnout and Resilience among Emergency Physicians at Korean University Hospitals during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Analysis

Abstract

Purpose This study aimed to investigate burnout and resilience among emergency physicians (EPs) at university teaching hospitals during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Materials and Methods In April to May 2021, a survey was administered to 331 and 309 emergency medicine specialists and residents, respectively, from 31 university teaching hospitals in Korea. Data on the respondents’ age, sex, designation, working area, experience with treating COVID-19 patients, and personal experience with COVID-19 were collected. Based on the participants’ characteristics, quality of life (compassion satisfaction, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress), resilience, emotional content, and self-image were analyzed. Results A total of 247 responses were analyzed. Compared to specialists, compassion satisfaction and resilience in residents were not good, burnout was severe, and emotional content and self-image were less positive. Experiences with treating COVID-19 patients did not cause any difference in quality of life, resilience, emotional content, and self-image among participant subgroups. Personal COVID-19 experiences were associated with poor compassion satisfaction, resilience, less positive emotional content and self-image, and severe burnout. Compassion satisfaction, secondary traumatic stress, and resilience can definitively affect burnout. Conclusion The quality of life and resilience of EPs in university teaching hospitals in Korea during the COVID-19 pandemic have been low. Supportive measures to improve resilience can prevent burnout among emergency staff, particularly residents and EPs, with personal experiences related to COVID-19.

The effectiveness of emotion-focused art therapy on the resilience and self-image of emergency physicians

“…The average CD-RISC score of participants before the EFAT was similar to that (59.43±13.23) reported in a study on Korean EPs, but the average score after the EFAT in this study was significantly higher than that obtained in the aforementioned study. [27] The average CD-RISC scores of healthy adults and students in Korea are 66.8 [28] and 67.2, [29] respectively, which are similar to the improved resilience scores after the EFAT in this study. Therefore, it can be interpreted that the temporary improvement in resilience is similar to the resilience levels of the general adult population in Korea.…”

“…[17] While the CD-RISC scores of the general Korean population are lower than those of the general US population owing to cultural differences, the average post-EFAT score in this study was higher than that of the general Korean population. In addition, given that our study and Kim et al's [27] study were conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, whereas the aforementioned studies were conducted before the pandemic, it is necessary to follow up on the resilience levels of EPs after the pandemic ends.…”

A systematic review and meta analysis on burnout in physicians during the COVID-19 pandemic: A hidden healthcare crisis

“…A total of 27 ( 8 , 26 , 27 , 39 – 59 ) studies included both frontline and second-line workers in their studies, while twelve studies ( 24 , 25 , 28 , 60 – 68 ) had only frontline workers and six ( 32 , 69 – 73 ) did not delineate between frontline and second-line workers. In terms of regions, fifteen (33.3%) of studies ( 28 , 41 , 45 , 47 , 51 , 55 , 56 , 58 , 59 , 63 , 67 , 68 , 71 , 72 , 74 ) took place in Asia. Europe ( 8 , 26 , 42 , 48 , 53 , 57 , 60 , 62 , 66 , 69 , 73 ) was represented by 11 (24.4%) studies while the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) ( 25 , 32 , 39 , 44 , 46 , 49 , 50 , 64 , 65 , 70 ) were represented by ten (22.2%) studies each.…”

“…Burnout results between nurses and physicians were compared in fourteen studies ( 32 , 42 , 43 , 53 , 55 , 56 , 62 , 63 , 67 – 71 , 74 ). Twenty-eight studies ( 8 , 25 , 27 , 28 , 32 , 39 , 40 , 42 – 44 , 47 , 49 , 50 , 52 , 53 , 55 – 59 , 62 , 63 , 65 , 67 , 68 , 70 , 73 , 75 ) conducted data collection during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and fifteen ( 24 , 26 , 41 , 44 – 46 , 48 , 51 , 54 , 60 , 62 , 66 , 69 , 71 , 74 , 76 ) studies were conducted during the later stages. Two studies ( 26 , 61 ) did not specify the time of data collection.…”

Which blood pressure metrics should be used in patients on dialysis?

“…In addition, blood pressure (BP) status long-term hemodialysis (HD) is often not properly diagnosed and is poorly controlled [ 5 – 7 ]. Moreover, the recent coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has served as an opportunity to confirm once again how difficult it is to maintain public health while consuming many social resources [ 8 – 10 ].…”