Burnout and Turnover Intention in Critical Care Professionals During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan: A Cross-sectional Survey.

RATIONALE: The prevalence of burnout among critical care professionals during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic varies in different countries. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the prevalence of burnout and turnover intention in Japanese critical care professionals in March 2021. METHODS: This cross-sectional study used a web-based survey of Japanese critical care professionals working in 15 intensive care units in 15 prefectures. Burnout was measured using the Mini Z 2.0 Survey. Intention to leave (turnover intention) was assessed by survey. Resilience was measured using the Brief Resilience Scale (Japanese version). Demographics and personal and workplace characteristics were also collected. RESULTS: Of 1,205 critical care professionals approached, 936 (77.6%) completed the survey. Among these, 24.3%, 20.6%, and 14.2%, reported symptoms of burnout, depression, and anxiety, respectively. A total of 157 respondents (16.8%) reported turnover intention. On multivariate analysis, higher resilience scores (odds ratio [OR]: 0.90, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.84-0.95; and OR: 0.94, 95% CI: 0.91-0.96) and perceived support from the hospital (OR: 0.64, 95% CI: 0.44-0.93; and OR: 0.54, 95% CI: 0.40-0.73) were associated with a lower odds of burnout and turnover intention, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Approximately 24% and 17% of the Japanese critical care professionals surveyed had symptoms of burnout and turnover intention from critical care, respectively, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Such professionals require organizational level support to cultivate both individual and organizational resilience to reduce burnout and turnover intention.

Prevalence and Risk Factor Analysis of Post-Intensive Care Syndrome in Patients with COVID-19 Requiring Mechanical Ventilation: A Multicenter Prospective Observational Study.

INTRODUCTION: Post-intensive care syndrome (PICS) is an emerging problem in critically ill patients and the prevalence and risk factors are unclear in patients with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This multicenter prospective observational study aimed to investigate the prevalence and risk factors of PICS in ventilated patients with COVID-19 after ICU discharge. METHODS: Questionnaires were administered twice in surviving patients with COVID-19 who had required mechanical ventilation, concerning Barthel Index, Short-Memory Questionnaire, and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale scores. The risk factors for PICS were examined using a multivariate logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: The first and second PICS surveys were obtained at 5.5 and 13.5 months (mean) after ICU discharge, with 251 and 209 patients completing the questionnaires and with a prevalence of PICS of 58.6% and 60.8%, respectively, along with the highest percentages of cognitive impairment. Delirium (with an odds ratio of (OR) 2.34, 95% CI 1.1-4.9, and p = 0.03) and the duration of mechanical ventilation (with an OR of 1.29, 95% CI 1.05-1.58, and p = 0.02) were independently identified as the risk factors for PICS in the first PICS survey. CONCLUSION: Approximately 60% of the ventilated patients with COVID-19 experienced persistent PICS, especially delirium, and required longer mechanical ventilation.