Factors contributing to burnout among perfusionists in the United States

As the job climate continues to change, many perfusionists are faced with high employee turnover rates, working longer hours, and increased stress related to more complex surgeries. Understanding the sources of professional burnout and stress may allow the formulation of a strategy to help prevent such negative outcomes. The purpose of this study was to determine the current level of stress and burnout among perfusionists.

A questionnaire was constructed with the use of SurveyMonkey®. Invitations requesting participation in the survey were distributed by electronic mail to members of PerfList and PerfMail. To assess burnout, components of the well-established Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) tool were used.

At p<0.05, job demand variables such as stress level, conflict, call duties, hours worked, and case load were all shown to have a statistically significant relationship to burnout.

The study found that, among the various factors, job demands were the most likely culprit contributing to burnout. Stress level and conflict, in particular, had the strongest association to burnout.