What is Known About NICU Nurse Burnout: A Scoping Review

Bedside nurses in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) experience unique and challenging work, which can result in burnout for reasons that may differ from other healthcare providers.

The aim was to synthesize existing literature related to NICU nurse burnout to describe its characteristics, determinants, and implications.

Supported by a medical librarian, 5 databases were searched (PubMed/MEDLINE, CINAHL, ProQuest Nursing, PsycINFO, and Cochrane Reviews) with no date boundaries.

Methodological guidance from both PRISMA-ScR and Joanna Briggs Institute was used in the scoping review. From the 342 screened articles, 26 met inclusion criteria.

We used Covidence to perform an independent two-person review strategy with a piloted and calibrated data extraction form.

Burnout was more common among younger and less experienced NICU nurses. Positive work environments and good interpersonal relationships reduced burnout. Across the articles using the Maslach Burnout Inventory, depersonalization was low (M = 4.2) and emotional exhaustion was low to moderate (M = 17.4). Mean personal accomplishment scores (M = 29.4) indicated high burnout in this dimension.

A positive work environment, supportive management, and access to mental health resources for burnout may help to reduce burnout, especially for novice nurses, those with concurrent mental health challenges, and during distressing patient care events. The identified knowledge gaps include a lack of longitudinal evidence, sparse interventional outcomes, and a paucity of correlational studies about how nursing care approaches may affect burnout.