Prevalence and degree of burnout and associated factors from five major specialties in teaching hospitals of University of Colombo

Background: Despite extensive studies done on burnout among physicians in other countries, there is a paucity of data on physician burnout in Sri Lanka.

Objectives: The study was conducted to assess the burnout of medical doctors practicing medicine, surgery, gynaecology and obstetrics, paediatrics and psychiatry specialties and to determine possible associations.

Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was done on a sample of 200 working medical doctors from four major hospitals in Colombo district. The data was collected by means of a self-administered questionnaire modified from Oldenburg Burnout Inventory and Copenhagen Burnout Inventory which measured burnout under 3 components; personal, client related, and work-related burnout. Mean burnout score of each specialty was calculated and was analyzed using ANOVA. 

Results: The study revealed 15.7% of doctors to be burnt out. Prevalence of burnout was highest in paediatric specialty (25.8%) and lowest in surgery specialty (0%). Mean burnout score was higher in paediatric specialty (41.7) and medicine specialty (41.0) and lowest in surgery specialty (32.6) with the differences being statistically significant between surgery and medicine (p=0.003) and between surgery and paediatrics (p=0.001). Overall state of burnout of doctors showed a significant association with sex (p<0.001) and designation (p=0.021). Several other significant associations were found within each subspecialty. 

Conclusion: The study revealed that specialty, designation and sex are significantly associated with prevalence and degree of burnout in doctors as a whole.