Burnout Among Medical Doctors Working in Paediatric Intensive Care Units in Bulgaria

Introduction. Paediatric intensive care units (PICUs) provide special and comprehensive care and treatment to critically ill children. These factors lead to the exposure of the personnel to stress and the risk of developing burnout syndrome. Methods and participants. In order to evaluate burnout syndrome among physicians employed at PICUs, we carried out our study between September and December of 2023. With the authors' consent, we used a survey that was published in June 2023 in Acta Paediatrica (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com). The survey was distributed to the physicians working in the existing PICUs in Bulgaria after being translated and reviewed. Results. A total of 37/43 (83.7%) doctors and two clinical psychologists completed the survey. More women than men took part in the study. Of the respondents, 36% were paediatricians, and 30% were specialists in Anesthesiology and Intensive care. In total, 70.3% of the staff reported working between 40-50 hours/week, and 24.3% working more than 50 hours/week; 73% of the employees experienced an episode of overheating, depression, and anxiety. Of all, 75.6% felt exhausted from work, and 43.2% defined themselves as "crushed”. Despite the difficulties that the staff faced, the majority of the doctors express satisfaction with their work and would choose the same specialty again. Conclusion. This study presents for the first time quantitative data on Bulgarian physicians' burnout in PICUs. Burnout among healthcare professionals is a worldwide issue that has a detrimental effect on staff productivity, patient care quality, and hiring medical personnel. Specific solutions are required, such as the establishment of paediatric intensive care as a distinct specialty.