Burnout level evaluation of undergraduate dental college students at middle eastern university

Pressure faced by dental students from academic activities, clinical skills training, and patient care may lead to high stress and potential burnout, negatively impacting their well-being and patient safety.

The study aimed to explore the burnout level of dental students at Qassim University, Saudi Arabia and to identify the factors that are associated with the level of burnout.

The descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out at Dental College, Qassim University, Saudi Arabia, from January to February 2024. The study was conducted to evaluate burnout levels among first to final-year undergraduate dental students enrolled at Qassim University using a pre-validated questionnaire; Burnout Clinical Subtype Questionnaire, via Google Forms. Analysis was performed with IBM SPSS-24, utilizing descriptive statistics and non-parametric tests, Mann-Whitney-U and Kruskal-Wallis. A multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to predict Burnout from demographic and academic factors.

151 participants responded to the survey, with 49.7% male and 50.3% female. Results showed that burnout scores increased significantly (p < 0.05) with age and decreased family support. Males had lower burnout levels in comparison to their counterparts. The survey had three domains: Overload, Neglect, and Development, with 'Overload' having the highest mean score of 17.79 and a median score of 17.00. Age showed significant difference (p < .05) in the burnout scores amongst the groups across all three domains. 70.9% of the participants agreed that they invested an unhealthy amount of time towards their studies. The multiple regression model statistically significantly predicted Burnout, F (21, 129) = 2.190, p = .004, adj. R² = 0.143. Gender was significant predictor, with female students reporting lower burnout scores compared to males (B=-5.633, p = .012). Family support also emerged as significant, with students reporting merely good family support showing higher burnout scores compared to those reporting very good family support (B = 6.147, p = .009).

Factors like age, family support and gender were found to have a significant with burnout levels and its domains. The study highlighted overload as the main contributing the most towards burnout in dental students of Qassim University, emphasizing the importance of tailored interventions to promote student well-being.