Rheumatology is seen as a low-risk specialty, yet studies have revealed a burnout rate ranging from 42% to 51%. For a study, researchers sought to find out how common burnout is among rheumatologists in Latin America and what variables contribute to it. A cross-sectional study was conducted using a survey administered via the Google Forms platform and distributed via the Latin American national rheumatology associations. The Maslach Burnout Inventory was used to measure burnout. The statistical tool SPSS v.22 was used to examine the data. There were 297 rheumatologists from 15 countries, the majority of them were from Argentina (28.3%), Brazil (26.3%), and Mexico (12.8%). The vast majority were females. 62%, 42.4% worked in public hospitals for an average of 40.1+14.2 hours per week; 31.3% did research, 13.1% clinical trials, 56.6% teaching, and 42.8% administrative work; 36% earned less than $25,000 per year, and 56.6% experienced burnout in at least 1 dimension. Only 20.2% said they were burnt out, 9.% were now receiving professional treatment, and 15.8% had sought help in the past; 72.1% claimed they were willing to enroll in a burnout reduction program. Burnout rheumatologists were younger than non-burnout rheumatologists (46.5 vs 49.9 years, P=0.015).
Burnout affected nearly half of Latin American rheumatologists and had been linked to younger age, long working hours, low satisfaction, less happiness, a higher Patient Health Questionnaire–9, suicidal thoughts, anxiety, income, the existence of comorbidities, and low self-esteem.
Reference:journals.lww.com/jclinrheum/Abstract/2022/01000/Burnout_in_Rheumatologists_in_Latin_America.1.aspx
