Female Physicians Suffer a Higher Burnout Rate: A 10-Year Experience of the Qatar EM Residency Training Programme

Burnout rate among emergency physicians has shown a gradual increase in the last 20 years. To explore the burnout syndrome, we conducted an email questionnaire survey of the residents graduating from Qatar emergency medicine residency training programme between 2000 and 2009. A total of 75 residents (44 males and 31 females) graduated with board pass rates of 73.3% males and 73.8% females. Seven females (22.6%) and one male (2.3%) left emergency medicine completely. There was a significantly higher burnout rate observed in female emergency physicians compared to their male counterparts (22.6% vs 2.3%). The common reasons stated for leaving emergency medicine were that it was "stressful work", "better work and life balance in primary health care" and "social reasons". Burnout syndrome has become a global phenomenon; resulting in several organizations such as the American Academy of Family Physicians putting forward guidance and self-help courses for physicians to prevent this condition.