Telangana Journal of Psychiatry

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Burnout and its impact on mental health of physicians during the COVID -19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study from South India

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Original Article

Author Details : Nukala Srikrishna, Archana Vinnakota*, Singisetti Srinivas, Chilukuri Shvetha, Garapati Venkata Abhilash, Sanapala Vidya

Volume : 6, Issue : 2, Year : 2020

Article Page : 160-165

https://10.18231/j.tjp.2020.032

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Abstract

Background: A large number of doctors are experiencing Burnout during the present COVID-19 pandemic. Excessive workload, uncertainty, longer working hours, work - family conflicts, and difficult working conditions during the pandemic are some of the reasons for physician Burnout. The greatest risk of Burnout is that doctors may feel disconnected with their profession and are more likely to suffer from various mental health issues.
Aim: To assess Burnout and its impact on mental health of physicians during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on physicians working at Government designated COVID-19 Hospitals of a city in South India in May 2020. Purposive sampling technique was used in the study. One hundred and eighty eight (188) physicians were included in the study and were given the requisite material and study tools via email, after providing them with information about the study and tools for assessment. Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) was used to assess Burnout. Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HADS) was used for screening of anxiety and depression in physicians. Chi-square test and Pearson’s correlation were used in statistical analysis.
Results: Burnout was noted in 54.3% of physicians. Anxiety and Depression was seen in 14.9% and 15.4% of the physicians respectively. Age, presence of anxiety and depression had a significant association with Burnout. Disengagement group showed a stronger positive correlation with depression, while exhaustion group showed a stronger positive correlation with anxiety.
Conclusion: Burnout, anxiety and depression levels amongst physicians noted in the current study seem to be far less when compared to other existing studies. This could be resultant from better preparedness of physicians for public health crisis compared to other health care workers. The high rates of Burnout, anxiety and depression among physicians during the pandemic highlights the need for designing the appropriate psychological interventions by the healthcare system to support the physicians working in the midst of COVID-19 pandemic and in the post-pandemic era.

Keywords: Anxiety, Depression, Disengagement, Doctors, Exhaustion.

How to cite : Srikrishna N , Vinnakota A , Srinivas S , Shvetha C , Abhilash G V , Vidya S , Burnout and its impact on mental health of physicians during the COVID -19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study from South India. Telangana J Psychiatry 2020;6(2):160-165

Copyright © 2020 by author(s) and Telangana J Psychiatry. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (creativecommons.org)