- The WHO considers Burnout Syndrome within its International Catalog of Diseases.
- The Emergency Medicine specialty ranks first among those with the highest rates of this condition.
- Stress and burnout reinforce each other; however, the second has a much greater impact than the first.
It is commonly spoken of Burnout syndrome and stress as if they were synonyms although they are not. It is true that both are associated with tiredness but they are by no means the same. Each one requires immediate attention to prevent the problem from escalating into irreparable damage. Therefore, do you know what their differences are?
Regarding this issue, María Méndez, who is the president and founder of Vacation is a Human Right (VIAHR), mentions that the Burnout syndrome it’s a totally different state of mind. Under stress, people struggle to cope with the pressures of everyday life. But once it takes hold, energy runs out, life begins to lose meaning, and small tasks feel like a big effort.
Stress and burnout reinforce each other. However, burnout has a much greater impact on stress. The more severe a person’s burnout becomes, the more stressed they will feel at work.
Employees who suffer from burnout must receive adequate support to break the vicious circle between work stress and Burnout syndrome. When employees feel some degree of control over their work and receive support from peers and superiors, the effect of both can be minimized.
The most common disease among doctors
Based on the above, it is natural that a large part of young people develop the Burnout syndrome. In its most specific definition, it is the sum of chronic stress and physical and mental exhaustion. It occurs when a person feels tired all the time and this does not allow them to carry out their personal or professional activities. The consequence is lower performance and also impacts on his quality of life.
Although some consider Burnout Syndrome as a minor problem, it is not really so. When it is not treated in time, it can cause serious depression that can even lead to suicide. That is why in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) of the World Health Organization (WHO) it is already recognized as a fairly serious problem.
Medical specialties with the highest prevalence of Burnout Syndrome
Now, although it affects all health professionals, there are some areas where it is more frequent. In this regard, the Medscape portal prepared the research Physician Burnout & Depression Report 2022: Stress, Anxiety and Anger.
For its elaboration, a survey was carried out on 13,000 doctors from 29 specialties. What was obtained is that Emergency Medicine is the most affected because 60% of the specialists admit to suffering from the Burnout syndrome. Although the reasons are not delved into, the exhaustive work, all the activities to be carried out and having death so close could be some of the causes.
While Intensive Care and Gynecology and Obstetrics appear in the following places with 56% and 53%, respectively. While below are Infectology with 51% and Family Medicine with 51%.
On the other hand, this scenario is quite dangerous because it affects not only the well-being of doctors. Being always exhausted increases the chances of making mistakes, therefore patients are also at risk. In the end it is a vicious circle where all parties are at risk.
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The medical specialties with the greatest presence of Burnout Syndrome