Well-Being, Work Environment, and Control Over Workload Accounting for Burnout Among Medical School Staff.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education Research
• Occupational Health Psychology
• Organizational Behavior

Background:

• Administrative staff in medical schools are crucial but often overlooked in well-being and burnout research.
• Existing studies primarily focus on faculty and learners, leaving a gap in understanding administrative staff experiences.
• This study addresses the under-researched area of administrative staff well-being and burnout within academic medical settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the factors contributing to burnout among administrative medical school staff.
• To determine the extent to which well-being domains, work environment, and workload control influence administrative staff burnout.
• To identify key areas for intervention to reduce burnout and improve well-being in this population.

Main Methods:

• A comprehensive well-being survey was administered to 2,367 administrative staff at the University of Minnesota Medical School.
• 1,027 staff completed the survey, yielding a 43% response rate.
• Ordinal logistic regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between 7 independent variables (well-being domains, work environment, workload control) and burnout.

Main Results:

• Well-being domains were positively correlated with each other and negatively associated with burnout.
• Well-being, work environment, and workload control collectively explained 45% of the variance in administrative staff burnout.
• Improved basics and work environment were linked to an 18% reduction in burnout; greater workload control significantly lowered burnout levels (63%-80%).

Conclusions:

• While well-being domains show a hierarchical structure, lacking basics, a poor work environment, and low workload control are associated with higher burnout.
• Enhancing workload control, fostering a supportive work environment, and addressing foundational basics are key strategies to mitigate burnout.
• Interventions targeting these factors hold significant potential for improving the overall well-being of medical school administrative staff.