Burnout and team functioning in pediatric pain care: A cross-sectional survey of multidisciplinary providers

Burnout is a concern among healthcare providers, linked to suboptimal patient care. Working as part of an integrated team has been identified as a mitigator and exacerbator of burnout, however, this relationship is not well understood in pediatric chronic pain care. This study assessed levels of burnout and perceptions of teamwork in a multidisciplinary group of pediatric chronic pain providers. A cross-sectional survey consisting of the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory and team functioning measures (i.e., communication/information sharing, team support, team effectiveness) was completed by N=195 providers. Pearson correlations were conducted to evaluate the association between burnout and teamwork. A K-means cluster analysis was used to group providers according to their level of burnout, and groupwise comparisons were conducted to examine differences in team functioning perceptions across established groups. Rates of personal (M=39.91, SD=16.97) and work-related (M=39.67, SD=17.75) burnout exceeded established norms. Team functioning ratings were generally positive; however, variability existed with poorer ratings in areas such as team coordination and productivity. Increased burnout was associated with poorer perceptions of team effectiveness and higher perceived room for improvement. K-means clustering identified three distinct provider groups: high, moderate, and low burnout, with significant differences in perceived team functioning across these groups. Elevated rates of burnout exist among multidisciplinary pediatric pain providers and are related to perceptions of team functioning. Research should explore directionality and causality of this relationship as well as provider experiences to support development of interventions to address team functioning and burnout and thus improve patient care.