Evaluating and Exploring Variations in Surgical Resident Emotional Intelligence and Burnout.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Psychology
• Surgical Training

Background:

• Surgery resident burnout rates are high (50-69%), increasing error risk and impacting patient satisfaction.
• Emotional intelligence (EI) involves emotional awareness, control, expression, and empathetic interpersonal handling.
• Addressing burnout is critical for resident well-being and patient care quality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the temporal correlation between emotional intelligence (EI) and burnout in surgery residents.
• To identify potential educational targets for burnout prevention.
• To explore objective measures for reducing resident burnout.

Main Methods:

• Prospective study at a single academic medical center.
• Involved general surgery residents (PGY1-PGY5, excluding research residents).
• Utilized self-reported assessments: Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and Scale of Emotional Functioning (SEF) at 3 time-points.

Main Results:

• 86 assessments completed; 15 residents finished all 3.
• Personal achievement (PA) changes on MBI strongly correlated with EI changes (r=0.606, p=0.017; r=0.616, p=0.015).
• Moderate/severe burnout symptoms: 62% emotional exhaustion, 73% depersonalization, 37% low PA. All scores (EI, MBI subscales) improved across administrations.

Conclusions:

• Burnout and EI scores improved spontaneously across 3 survey administrations without intervention.
• Personal achievement (PA) may serve as an indirect burnout assessment tool.
• Developing EI curricula could be a strategy for preventing surgery resident burnout.