Burnout and the stigma of help-seeking in nurses: A cross-sectional study

The aim of this study is to examine the association between burnout and the stigma of seeking professional psychological help among nurses working in surgical nursing field.

Nurses working in surgical settings face high levels of occupational stress, which increases their risk of burnout. Burnout, characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment, can significantly impact both the well-being of healthcare professionals and the quality of patient care. Despite the availability of professional psychological support, many nurses hesitate to seek help due to stigma, cultural perceptions, and workplace norms. Understanding the relationship between burnout and help-seeking stigma is essential to developing targeted interventions that promote mental health support and reduce barriers to psychological care in nursing professionals.

A cross-sectional study was conducted in Central Slovenia Region, from December 2024 to January 2025. 322 nurses completed the questionnaire on burnout and help-seeking stigma. Descriptive statistics, Spearman's correlation test, Mann-Whitney U test and Kruskal-Wallis U test were performed. p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

The study included 322 surgical nurses, with the majority reporting moderate to high levels of emotional exhaustion. A weak but statistically significant negative correlation (ρ = -0.178, p = 0.002) was found between burnout and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help, indicating that nurses experiencing higher burnout levels were less likely to seek support. Nurses with high emotional exhaustion showed more stigmatized views (U = 2091.5, p = 0.010), though post-hoc power for this subgroup comparison was low (≈ 0.22). Gender differences were observed, with men reporting higher stigma against psychological help-seeking (p = 0.036), while women experienced higher burnout levels, particularly emotional exhaustion (p = 0.001). No significant associations were found between personal fulfillment and help-seeking attitudes (p = 0.807), nor between burnout and years of work experience (p = 0.325).

These findings highlight the persistent stigma surrounding mental health support among surgical nurses, particularly those experiencing higher burnout. Emotional exhaustion appears to play a critical role in shaping attitudes toward help-seeking, suggesting that burnout interventions should incorporate mental health education to reduce stigma and encourage psychological support utilization. Gender disparities in burnout and stigma further emphasize the need for tailored interventions addressing the unique challenges faced by male and female nurses. Future research should explore organizational and cultural factors influencing psychological help-seeking behaviors and assess the effectiveness of workplace-based mental health interventions.