Burnout in Italian anesthesiologists and intensivists during the COVID-19 pandemic: a national survey.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 pandemic added additional burden upon healthcare systems and Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care physicians (AI) possessed crucial expertise for dealing with the pandemic. Aim of the study is to uncover specific burnout patterns among Italian AI exploring the hypothesis that burnout has a multi-cluster structure. Differences in social and professional characteristics between burnout patterns were explored. METHODS: One thousand and nine AI (658 women) members of Italian Society of Anesthesia, Analgesia, Resuscitation and Intensive Care (SIAARTI) working during COVID-19 pandemic participate. Sociodemographic, working information and burnout levels evaluated through Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) were collected. RESULTS: According to the MBI cut-off, 39.7% and 25.8% of participants scored high in Emotional Exhaustion and Depersonalization respectively, and 44.2% scored low in Personal Accomplishment. Cluster analysis highlighted four burnout profiles: Resilience, Detachment, Burnout, and Emotional Reserve. The results showed that AI in the Resilience and Emotional Reserve groups were significantly older and more experienced than those in the Detachment and Burnout groups. Additionally, more of the individuals in the Resilience group were working in intensive care units and departments dedicated to COVID-19 patients. The Detachment group was comprised of more AI working in operating units, while the Burnout group contained a higher number of AI working in COVID-19 departments. CONCLUSIONS: These findings highlight different burnout patterns in Italian AI: older age, more professional experience, and work in intensive care units and departments dedicated to COVID-19 seemed to be protective factors during the pandemic. This appear a first step to promote focused interventions.

From Resilience to Burnout in Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Emergency: The Role of the Ability to Tolerate Uncertainty.

The COVID-19 outbreak has placed extraordinary demands upon healthcare systems worldwide. Italy's hospitals have been among the most severely overwhelmed, and as a result, Italian healthcare workers' (HCWs) well-being has been at risk. The aim of this study is to explore the relationships between dimensions of burnout and various psychological features among Italian healthcare workers (HCWs) during the COVID-19 emergency. A group of 267 HCWs from a hospital in the Lazio Region completed self-administered questionnaires online through Google Forms, including the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), Resilience Scale, and Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale Short Form (IU). Cluster analysis highlighted two opposite burnout risk profiles: low burnout and high-risk burnout. The high-risk group had lower resilience and greater difficulties in tolerating the uncertainty than the low-burnout group. A set of general linear models confirmed that both IU subscales, prospective and inhibition, moderated the relationship between resilience and burnout (specifically in the depersonalization dimension). In conclusion, the results showed that individual levels of resilience and one's ability to tolerate uncertainty have been significant factors in determining the impact of the COVID-19 emergency on HCWs. The use of emotional strategies that allow individuals to stay in a critical situation without the need to control it appears to protect against burnout in these circumstances.