Meta-Analysis of Surgeon Burnout Syndrome and Specialty Differences

Surgeon burnout compromises the quality of life of physicians and the delivery of care to patients. Burnout rates and interpretation of the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) complicates the interpretation of surgeon burnout. The purpose of this study is to apply a standardized interpretation of severe surgeon burnout termed, "burnout syndrome" to analyze inherent variation within surgical specialties.

A systematic literature search was performed using MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and EMBASE to identify studies reporting MBI data by surgical specialty. Data extraction was performed to isolate surgeon specific data.

A meta-analysis was performed.

A total of 16 cross-sectional studies were included in this meta-analysis, totaling 3581 subjects. A random effects model approximated burnout syndrome at 3.0% (95% CI: 2.0%-5.0%; I² = 78.1%). Subscale analysis of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment indicated subscale burnout in 30.0% (CI: 25.0%-36.0%; I² = 93.2%), 34.0% (CI: 25.0%-43.0%; I² = 96.9%), and 25.0% (CI: 18.0%-32.0%; I² = 96.5%) of surgeons, respectively. Significant differences (p < 0.001) in MBI subscale scoring existed among surgical specialties.

Approximately 3% of surgeons suffer from extreme forms of burnout termed "burnout syndrome," although surgeon burnout may occur in up to 34% of surgeons, characterized by high burnout in 1 of 3 subscales. Surgical specialties have significantly different rates of burnout subscales. Future burnout studies should target the specialty-specific level to understand inherent differences in an effort to better understand methods of improving surgeon burnout.