Nursing practice environment in intensive care unit and professional burnout

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate and compare the nursing practice environments in Intensive Care Units of a public and private hospital and the prevalence of burnout among nursing professionals. Method: Cross-sectional, descriptive study with a quantitative approach to the data. The data collection took place between October 2018 and March 2019, and it was carried out through a questionnaire with socio-occupational variables and with metrics of intensity. The practice environment was assessed through the Nursing Work Index Revised (NWI-R); and the burnout was assessed by the Maslach Burnout Inventory (IBM). We included professionals with, at least, six months of employment, and those who were on leave or on a fixed-term employment contract were excluded. Results: The sample consisted of 296 professionals. We found Favorable environments in both institutions, however, low results in the subscales autonomy, control and organizational support in the private hospital. The prevalence of burnout among nurses was 2.5% in the public hospital and 9.1% in the private hospital, and among nursing technicians, it was 9.5% and 8.5%, respectively. Conclusion: The control of the environment, autonomy and support were considered critical points, referring to the importance of assessing institutions factors, that can improve the working conditions for the nursing team.

Incidencia del síndrome de burnout del profesional de enfermería en unidades críticas

“…Más aún cuando la gestión de los cuidados se ve condicionada por la falta de personal de enfermería, lo que se traduce en una mayor carga para el personal y, en consecuencia, en un mayor riesgo de Burnout. 9 Las unidades de cuidados intensivos son áreas de atención muy complejas y, por tanto, necesitan profesionales cualificados para gestionar estas demandas 10 . Estos autores también señalan que la insatisfacción puede ser inevitable, además del riesgo del aumento de casos nuevos del síndrome de Burnout, el absentismo laboral, la rotación de profesionales y el desgaste físico del equipo, además de las pérdidas en la prestación de asistencia como la aparición de incidentes y prácticas inadecuadas.…”

Characteristics of Occupational Burnout among Nurses of Various Specialties and in the Time of the COVID-19 Pandemic—Review

“…Various tools were used to assess the occurrence and characteristics of occupational burnout. The most frequently used scales were the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS) [ 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 ] and the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) [ 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 ]. The most common form of research was an Internet survey [ 2 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 25 , 26 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 ].…”

“…High depersonalization was noted in the studies by Alvares et al [ 21 ] among 25% of nurses working in ICU and Sarabia-Cobo et al [ 2 ] among 21.8% of geriatric nurses. Mean values of personal accomplishment ranged from 29.8 ± 3.5 [ 24 ] do 38.74 ± 6.20 [ 26 ].…”

“…The provision of mental support for medical personnel also plays an important role, among others, through cooperation with a psychologist. It should be emphasized that the key role in the aspect of prevention and intervention will be played by cooperation and an attempt at mutual understanding between employers, management and medical staff [ 13 , 24 , 34 ].…”

Global prevalence of nursing burnout syndrome and temporal trends for the last 10 years: A meta‐analysis of 94 studies covering over 30 countries

“…The trends in North America and Asia decreased, but there was no statistical significance. Job stability of nurses and the granting of benefits may be some reasons for it, and research differences in different countries may also lead to a decline in the prevalence (Möller et al, 2021; Woo et al, 2020). Although there was no statistical significance, the prevalence of nursing burnout in ICU, Oncology, and ED has declined for the last 10 years, which seemed inconsistent with the current research (Ramírez‐Elvira et al, 2021; Toscano et al, 2022).…”