[Burnout syndrome among nurses and nurses' aides in an intensive care unit and admission wards]

To compare the degree of severity of burnout syndrome among the healthcare personnel of an intensive care unit (ICU) and admission wards.

We performed a cross-sectional, descriptive study with nurses and nurses' aides in the ICU and admission wards of the Hospital Universitario Insular de Gran Canaria (Spain). An anonymous survey was performed through the 22-item Maslach Burnout Inventory, which measures the three dimensions of burnout syndrome: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and personal accomplishment.

We interviewed 92 nurses (61% from the ICU and 39% from admission wards) and 80 nurses' aides (51% from the ICU and 49% from admission wards). In all groups, a moderate degree of emotional exhaustion was found, which was more severe in nurses' aides working on admission wards than in those working in the ICU (22.26, SD=7.47 vs 26.51, SD=7.12, p=0.011). High levels of depersonalization and emotional exhaustion were found in all groups, with no significant difference among staff working in the ICU or admission wards.

No significant differences were found in the perception of burnout between staff in the ICU or in admission wards. The degree of emotional exhaustion was moderate, while degrees of depersonalization and lack of personal accomplishment were high.