Association between physical activity and burnout among healthcare providers in Saudi Arabia: A cross-sectional study

Burnout among healthcare providers is a major occupational health concern, associated with reduced quality of care, medical errors, and workforce attrition. Physical activity (PA) has been proposed as a factor associated with lower burnout, yet evidence from Saudi Arabia remains limited. This cross-sectional study examined the association between PA and burnout among healthcare providers in Saudi Arabia. A total of 110 healthcare providers (physicians, pharmacists, nurses, physiotherapists, and occupational therapists) completed a self-administered survey. Sociodemographic and professional data were collected, PA was assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form (IPAQ-SF), and burnout was measured with the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI). PA was categorized as low, moderate, or high, and total and domain-specific CBI scores (personal, work-related, client-related) were calculated. One-way ANOVA examined differences in burnout across PA levels. Multiple linear regression and logistic regression were used to evaluate PA influence, adjusting for age, gender, and profession. Higher levels of PA were associated with lower burnout among healthcare providers in Saudi Arabia. Although causality cannot be inferred from this cross-sectional design, given the limitations of convenience sampling and unmeasured occupational confounders, the findings suggest that PA may be one of several modifiable factors worth considering in occupational health strategies aimed at reducing burnout in Saudi healthcare settings. Most participants reported moderate (50.9%) or low (41.8%) burnout; and 7.3% reported high burnout level. High PA was common (57.3%), followed by moderate (26.4%) and low (16.4%) PA. Burnout differed significantly across PA levels for total and all domain scores (all P < .001; η2 = 0.23-0.34), with the high-PA group showing the lowest burnout. In linear regression, compared with high PA, low PA was associated with a 24.55-point higher total CBI score (B = 24.55, 95% CI: [17.05, 32.05], P < .001) and moderate PA with a 14.81-point higher score (B = 14.81, 95% CI: [8.61, 20.99], P < .001), while age, gender, and profession were not significant. In logistic regression, each additional 1000 MET-min/wk of PA was associated with a 50% reduction in the odds of moderate/high burnout (adjusted OR = 0.50, 95% CI: [0.39-0.65], P < .001), independent of covariates.