Prevalence of burnout among healthcare professionals at the Serbian National Cancer Center

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the level of burnout and identify who is at highest risk among healthcare professionals (HCPs) working at the largest referent national institution.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted at the Institute of Oncology and Radiology of Serbia from May 2019 to July 2019, evaluating the level of burnout, depression, fatigue, socio-demographic, behavioral and professional characteristics, and quality of life among healthcare professionals. Of the 576 distributed questionnaires among physicians, nurses/technicians and healthcare coworkers, 432 participants returned their questionnaires (75%). All instruments used in our study had been validated and cross-culturally adapted to Serbian language.

Results: The overall prevalence of burnout was 42.4%, with the greatest proportion of burned out in emotional exhaustion domain (66.9%). The multivariable-adjusted model analysis showed that nurses/technicians had a 1.41 times greater chance of experiencing burnout, compared to physicians (OR = 1.41, 95% CI 1.16-7.10), and that with each year of work experience, the chance of burnout increased by about 2% (OR = 1.02, 95% CI 1.00-1.92). Furthermore, it was shown that, with each point in the PHQ-9 score for depression, probability of burnout increased by 14% (OR = 1.14, 95% CI 1.07-1.94). Finally, after controlling all these potential confounders, the Mental Composite Score of SF-36 score showed an independent prognostic value in exploring the burnout presence among HCPs (OR = 1.17, 95% CI 1.03-2.47).

Conclusion: Our research showed a significant level of burnout among healthcare professionals working in oncology, especially among nurses/technicians. The development of effective interventions at both individual and organizational level toward specific risk groups is needed