High risk of burnout in medical students in Serbia, by gender: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Introduction Burnout syndrome is common among medical students, but findings about the gender differences in burnout are not consistent. The aim of this study was to assess high risk of burnout syndrome among medical students at one University in Serbia, by gender. Method A cross-sectional study was conducted at the Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac in 2014. The Maslach Burnout Inventory—Student Survey was used for assessment of burnout level. A questionnaire on basic socio-demographic characteristics (age, gender, marital status, habits, etc.) and academic performance (year of study, cumulative total average grade, length of study, housing, study financing, etc.) was used. The study included a total of 760 medical students (760/836 medical students; participation rate: 90.9%). Logistic regression analysis was used to determine odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). Results Significant gender differences were detected in prevalence of high risk of burnout syndrome (male students– 19.0% vs. female students– 12.8%, p = 0.024). A significant independent predictor of high risk for burnout syndrome in male medical students was study year (p for trend = 0.011), while in female medical students–study year (p for trend = 0.002) and use of sedatives (adjusted OR = 5.74, 95% CI = 1.96–16.77, p = 0.001). Conclusion Our results indicate the need to assess the risk of burnout syndrome at the very beginning of medical studies, in order to more effectively control the modifiable risk factors.

Gender differences in alcohol abuse/dependence among medical undergraduates during the post-COVID‑19 pandemic period (October 20, 2020-April 5, 2021) in China

“…Furthermore, our study found that only female medical undergraduates showed strong association between alcohol abuse/dependence and learning burnout. This was consistent with findings of other studies, which showed a significant association between the habit of drinking once or twice a week and burnout in female medical students only [ 81 ]. Notably, although a significantly higher prevalence of learning burnout was observed in male rather than female medical undergraduates, which was consistent with other studies [ 81 – 83 ], no significant association was found between alcohol abuse/dependence and learning burnout among male students.…”

“…This was consistent with findings of other studies, which showed a significant association between the habit of drinking once or twice a week and burnout in female medical students only [ 81 ]. Notably, although a significantly higher prevalence of learning burnout was observed in male rather than female medical undergraduates, which was consistent with other studies [ 81 – 83 ], no significant association was found between alcohol abuse/dependence and learning burnout among male students. This might be due to the gender difference in motivations for drinking, e.g., women were more likely to drink due to coping issues while men were more likely to drink for social and recreational reasons [ 84 , 85 ].…”

The relationship between the burnout syndrome and academic success of medical students: a cross-sectional study

“…As for the higher burnout risk in male students with lower GPA (≤8), literature reports controversial findings ( 36 , 40 – 43 ). In our earlier report on the same sample of students analysing gender differences in burnout risk ( 29 ), we found no difference in GPA between genders (GPA>8 was self-reported by 62.8 % of males and by 64.2 % of females, P=0.716), but high burnout risk prevailed significantly in male than female students (19.0 % versus 12.8 %, respectively, P=0.024). However, these findings should also be taken with reserve, as the male and female groups did not match (491 female vs 269 male students in the total sample).…”

“…However, to the best of our knowledge, studies looking for associations between GPA and other characteristics of medical students (such as gender, habits, housing, and study financing) and the impact of these associations on burnout are relatively scarce. In our earlier study (29) analysing gender differences in burnout risk among medical students in Kragujevac, Serbia, we found no difference in GPA between genders (GPA>8 was self-reported by 62.8 % of males and by 64.2 % of females, P=0.716), but high burnout risk significantly prevailed in male than female students (19.0 % versus 12.8 %, respectively, P=0.024). The aim of this study, however, was to look deeper and assess in the same sample of students how burnout may affect academic performance in view of other factors associated with it.…”

“…This cross-sectional study included 760 full-time university medical students from the first to sixth year at the Kragujevac University Faculty of Medical Sciences of the invited 836 (90.9 % response rate), as described in our previous report (29). Their curriculum includes preclinical training (first three study years) and clinical training (study years [4][5][6].…”