Dealing with the loss of a resident: An analysis of burnout rates in a reduced complement training program

Residents in all fields of medicine experience high levels of burnout and less job-related satisfaction due to the stress experienced during training. Reduced complement residency classes often experience increased workloads due to the need to compensate for the fewer number of classmates.

The goal of this study was to examine whether residency classes of reduced size experience higher levels of burnout.

The Maslach Burnout Inventory Survey was distributed to all orthopaedic residents at our institution for four consecutive years. Emotional exhaustion≥27 and depersonalization≥10 correlate with high levels of burnout. At our institution, two residents were lost during their second year of training. Group 1 (n = 56) consisted of residents with reduced-size classes, while group 2 (n = 60) consisted of residents with full complement classes.

Mean emotional exhaustion (29 vs. 30) and depersonalization (17 vs. 17) scores were comparable between reduced and full complement classes. The Maslach data from our study showed no statistical difference in burnout levels between classes of full complement and reduced complement.

When compared to a previous study on burnout conducted in large orthopaedic residency programs, our entire residency program did demonstrate similar levels of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization.