Burnout among Nurses and Doctors Working at a Tertiary Care Government Hospital: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

Work environment related feelings of dissatisfaction, exhaustion, decreased interest and isolation is common. Burnout among health professionals has been on rise at every stage of professional growth affecting wellness of service providers, patient care and health care organizational efficiency. Assessment of burnout among health care workers from government setup in the current context in this post COVID era in our socio-geographical context has become essential. The aim of this study was to find the prevalence of burnout among nurses and doctors working at a tertiary care government hospital in Nepal.

This descriptive cross sectional study was conducted among nurses and doctors working at a tertiary level government hospital from May 2022 to Nov 2022 after approval from Institutional Review Committee of the same institute. Nurses and doctors available on duty, from all ages were included. Trainees and students, those unable to participate due to their illness, on leave, known cases of mental illness were excluded. The point estimate was calculated at 95% Confidence Interval.

Among 180 participants, the prevalence of moderate burnout was 94 (52.22%) (44.92-59.51, 95% Confidence Interval). Among nurses 72 (50%), while in doctors 22 (61.11%) had moderate burnout. Out of those with moderate levels of burnout, the majority of 66 (52.80%) were in the age group 26-50 years.

The prevalence of burnout among nurses and doctors is high, similar to other studies done in similar settings.