Burnout syndrome among psychiatric trainees in 22 countries: Risk increased by long working hours, lack of supervision, and psychiatry not being first career choice.

BACKGROUND: Postgraduate medical trainees experience high rates of burnout, but evidence regarding psychiatric trainees is missing. We aim to determine burnout rates among psychiatric trainees, and identify individual, educational and work-related factors associated with severe burnout. METHODS: In an online survey psychiatric trainees from 22 countries were asked to complete the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI-GS) and provide information on individual, educational and work-related parameters. Linear mixed models were used to predict the MBI-GS scores, and a generalized linear mixed model to predict severe burnout. RESULTS: This is the largest study on burnout and training conditions among psychiatric trainees to date. Complete data were obtained from 1980 out of 7625 approached trainees (26%; range 17.8-65.6%). Participants were 31.9 (SD 5.3) years old with 2.8 (SD 1.9) years of training. Severe burnout was found in 726 (36.7%) trainees. The risk was higher for trainees who were younger (P<0.001), without children (P=0.010), and had not opted for psychiatry as a first career choice (P=0.043). After adjustment for socio-demographic characteristics, years in training and country differences in burnout, severe burnout remained associated with long working hours (P<0.001), lack of supervision (P<0.001), and not having regular time to rest (P=0.001). Main findings were replicated in a sensitivity analysis with countries with response rate above 50%. CONCLUSIONS: Besides previously described risk factors such as working hours and younger age, this is the first evidence of negative influence of lack of supervision and not opting for psychiatry as a first career choice on trainees' burnout.

[Traumatic arteriovenous fistulas during a period of peace]. / Traumatske arteriovenske fistule u mirnodopskim uslovima.

The aim of the study was to point out the significance of clinical vascular examination and angiography in diagnosis setting, with the presentation of the patients treated for traumatic arteriovenous (AV) fistulas, so as the significance of timely treatment of that specific traumatic entity. In the period 1985-1996 11 patients with traumatic AV fistulas were treated. The most frequent causes of injury were bullet from firearms and blunt injury. The most frequent injury localization was in upper leg (4 cases). The interval from injury till registration and/or treatment of AV fistula was from 10 days to 33 years. Murmur was noticed in nine patients, thrill in eight, and weakened or absent arterial pulsations below the place of injury were observed in five patients. The diagnosis was confirmed by classic or cine-angiography. Major blood vessels were surgically reconstructed by various techniques, and non-major were ligated or percutaneous transluminal embolization was used. It was concluded that the noticing of murmur and thrill above the place of injury pointed out the existence of traumatic AV fistula, and angiography represented reliable diagnostic method and should be used for diagnostic, as well as therapeutic purposes. In the case of major blood vessel injury, surgical reconstruction is the method of choice.