Burnout among Health Care Professionals during COVID-19

The present study examined organizational, situational (i.e., COVID-19-related), and psychological factors associated with burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic among 268 health care professionals in Norway. A total burnout score based on the Burnout Assessment Tool (BAT), the four core BAT subscales (i.e., Exhaustion, Mental Distance, Cognitive Impairment, and Emotional Impairment), and the COVID-19 Burnout Scale served as the dependent variable. Among the results, organizational factors such as work-home conflict, workload, and role conflict were positively related to burnout. Although autonomy and colleague support were negatively related to burnout, support from leaders was positively related to it, which might suggest a suppressive effect. Organizational factors explained most of the variance in general burnout (i.e., BAT Total), whereas situational (i.e., COVID-19-related) factors (e.g., involvement with COVID-19, fear of COVID-19, and COVID-19-induced stress) seemed to better explain COVID-19 burnout. COVID-19-oriented actions were related only to Mental Distance. Psychological factors such as meaning were negatively related to BAT Total, Exhaustion, and Mental Distance, whereas a breach of the psychological contract was related to all subscales. Such results suggest that organizational and situational factors contribute differently to general and COVID-19 burnout and that administering pandemic-specific assessment tools can clarify how the pandemic has affected mental health.

Automated summary

This study examined the factors associated with burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic among healthcare professionals in Norway. The results showed that organizational factors such as work-home conflict, workload, and role conflict were positively related to burnout, while autonomy and colleague support were negatively related. Situational factors related to COVID-19, such as involvement, fear, and stress, explained COVID-19 burnout. Psychological factors like meaning and breach of the psychological contract also had an impact on burnout. The study suggests that organizational and situational factors contribute differently to general and COVID-19 burnout, and pandemic-specific assessment tools can help understand the effects on mental health.