RISK FACTORS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF BURNOUT SYNDROME IN MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS
Keywords:
medical professionals, risk factors, burnout syndrome, occupational healthAbstract
Medical professionals are among the most occupationally exposed to the development of burnout syndrome. In their practice, they face numerous psychological and emotional discomforts on a daily basis, which pose significant occupational risks for them. Adherence to a strict work schedule, treating anxious and painful patients, dealing with life-threatening situations and undertaking procedures with uncertain prognosis are major stressors in the practice of their profession. The aim of this article is to examine the main risk factors for the development of burnout syndrome in medical professionals.
Material and methods. PubMed, Google Scholar, and Science Direct (Elsevier) databases were accessed and reviewed. The search was performed using keywords from June 1 to July 10, 2025.
The chief risk factors for occupational health in the work of medical professionals were studied, which can be grouped as demographic, psychosocial, professional and organisational.
Medical professionals are at high risk of developing occupational diseases. It is crucial for health authorities to plan the necessary measures and policies for the prevention of occupational risks. The shared responsibility and joint efforts of medical professionals and the state to reduce risk factors can optimise both the quality of medical care and the social costs of it.
References
Драгушева, С., Петлешкова, П., & Стамова-Георгиева, М. (2024). Акценти за повишаване качеството на сестриските грижи и удовлетвореност на пациента. Управление и образование, 20(5), 145-148.
Стоянова, Р. (2015). Текучеството на медицинските сестри в Южен централен район на Република България – нагласи, фактори и перспективи. Дисертация, Медицински университет – Пловдив.
Харизанова, С., & Стоянова, Р. (2017). Бърнаут синдром. Практическо ръководство за диагностика, оценка и превенция. Под редакцията на Радост Асенова. Лакс бук ЕООД.
Adekola, B. (2010). Gender differences in the experience of work бърнаут among university staff. African Journal of Business Management, 4(6), 886-889.
Apaydin, E. A., Rose, D. E., Yano, E. M., Shekelle, P. G., Stockdale, S. E., & Mohr, D. C. (2022). Gender Differences in the Relationship Between Workplace Civility and Бърнаут Among VA Primary Care Providers. Journal of general internal medicine, 37(3), 632–636.
Balendran, B., Bath, M. F., Awopetu, A. I., & Kreckler, S. M. (2021). Бърнаут within UK surgical specialties: a systematic review. The Annals of The Royal College of Surgeons of England, 103(7), 464-470.
Barsyte, E., Bineviciute, Z., & Venskutonis, T. (2025). Musculoskeletal Disorders among Lithuanian Dentists and Oral Hygienists. Journal of oral & maxillofacial research, 16(1), e5.
Bouza, Е., Palomo, Е., & Gil-Monte, P.R. (2020). Work-related бърнаут syndrome in physicians in Spain. Revista Clínica Española. 220, 359–363,
Bria, M., Baban, A. & Dumitrascu, D. L. (2012). Systematic review of бърнаут risk factors among European healthcare professionals. Romanian Association for Cognitive Science, 10 (3), 423-452.
Căminișteanu, F., Vorovenci, A., Perieanu, V. Ș., Petri, S. A., Burlibașa, L., David, M., Drăguș, A. C., & Burlibașa, M. (2025). Occupational diseases among dental personnel: a scoping review. Journal of medicine and life, 18(6), 526–535.
Castelo-Branco, C., Figueras, F., Eixarch, E., Quereda, F., Cancelo, M. J., González, S., & Balasch, J. (2007). Stress symptoms and бърнаут in obstetric and gynaecology residents. BJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology, 114(1), 94–98.
Chambers, R., George, V., McNeill, A., & Campbell, I. (1998). Health at work in the general practice. The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 48(433), 1501–1504.
Chirico, F., Afolabi, A. A., Ilesanmi, O. S., Nucera, G., Ferrari, G., Sacco, A., ... & Leiter, M. (2021). Prevalence, risk factors and prevention of бърнаут syndrome among healthcare workers: an umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses. Journal of Health and Social Sciences, 6(4), 465-491.
Dragusheva, S. (2024). Challenges related to e-learning in basic training to the students -healthcare professionals in COVID-19. Journal of Environmental Protection and Ecology, 25:(6), 2156–2164
Dragusheva, S., Petleshkova, P., Uchikov, P. (2021). Adaptation of nurses to online education and training in COVID-19 pandemic conditions. Environmental Protection and Ecology, 22(3), 1290-1296.
Dyrbye, L. N., Satele, D., Sloan, J., & Shanafelt, T. D. (2013). Utility of a brief screening tool to identify physicians in distress. Journal of general internal medicine, 28(3), 421–427
Fajardo-Lazo, F. J., Mesa-Cano, I. C., Ramírez-Coronel, A. A., & Quezada, F. C. R. (2021). Professional Бърнаут syndrome in health professionals. Archivos Venezolanos de Farmacología y Terapéutica, 40(3), 248-255.
Escribà-Agüir, V., Martín-Baena, D., & Pérez-Hoyos, S. (2006). Psychosocial work environment and бърнаут among emergency medical and nursing staff. International archives of occupational and environmental health, 80(2), 127–133.
Gómez-Polo, C., Casado, A. M. M., & Montero, J. (2022). Бърнаут syndrome in dentists: Work-related factors. Journal of dentistry, 121, 104143.
Hansen, N., Sverke, M., & Näswall, K. (2009). Predicting nurse бърнаут from demands and resources in three acute care hospitals under different forms of ownership: a cross-sectional questionnaire survey. International journal of nursing studies, 46(1), 95–106.
Houkes, I., Winants, Y., Twellaar, M., & Verdonk, P. (2011). Development of бърнаут over time and the causal order of the three dimensions of бърнаут among male and female GPs. A three-wave panel study. BMC public health, 11, 240.
Freudenberger, H.J. (1975). The staff burn-out syndrome in alternative institutions. Psychotherapy, 12, 73–82.
Freudenberger, H., & Richelson, G. (1980). Burn Out: The High Cost Of High Achievement, What It Is And How To Survive It. Bantam Books, New York, NY.
Kartsonaki, M. G., Georgopoulos, D., Kondili, E., Nieri, A. S., Alevizaki, A., Nyktari, V., & Papaioannou, A. (2023). Prevalence and factors associated with compassion fatigue, compassion satisfaction, бърнаут in health professionals. Nursing in critical care, 28(2), 225-235.
Karuna, C., Palmer, V., Scott, A., & Gunn, J. (2022). Prevalence of бърнаут among GPs: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 72(718), e316–e324.
Kilova, K., Stoyanova, R., Harizanova, S., & Baltov, M. (2024). Бърнаут and Satisfaction with Work–Life Balance among General Practitioners in Bulgaria during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Healthcare, 12(10), 987.
Kitov, B., Epifanceva, E., Asenova, R., Kitova, T. (2020). Stress and its importance for the human body. General Medicine, 22(6), 74–80.
Kovner, C., Brewer, C., Wu, Y. W., Cheng, Y., & Suzuki, M. (2006). Factors associated with work satisfaction of registered nurses. Journal of nursing scholarship : an official publication of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing, 38(1), 71–79.
Leiter, M. P., & Maslach, C. (2005). A mediation model of job бърнаут. In Antoniou, A. S. G.,. & Cooper, C. L. (Eds.), Research Companion to Organizational Health Psychology. New Horizons in Management, 544 – 564.
Leiter, M. P., Gascón, S., & Martínez-Jarreta, B. (2010). Making Sense of Work Life: A Structural Model of Бърнаут. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 40(1), 57–75.
Malsam, R., & Nienhaus, A. (2021). Occupational Infections among Dental Health Workers in Germany-14-Year Time Trends. International journal of environmental research and public health, 18(19), 10128.
Maslach, C., & Jackson, S. E. (1981). The measurement of experienced бърнаут. Journal of Occupational Behavior, 2, 99-113.
Maslach, C., Schaufeli, W. B., & Leiter, M. P. (2001). Job бърнаут. Annual review of psychology, 52, 397–422.
Maslach, C., & Leiter, M. P. (2008). Early predictors of job бърнаут and engagement. Journal of Applied Psychology, 93(3), 498–512.
Matt, G. E., & Dean, A. (1993). Social support from friends and psychological distress among elderly persons: moderator effects of age. Journal of health and social behavior, 34(3), 187–200.
McGlone, S. J., & Chenoweth, I. G. (2001). Job demands and control as predictors of occupational satisfaction in general practice. The Medical journal of Australia, 175(2), 88–91.
Messing K, Punnett L, Alexanderson K, et al. Be the fairest of them all: Challenges and recommendations for the treatment of gender in occupational health research. Am J Ind Med 2003; 43 (6):618-629.
Noe, R.A., Hollenbeck, J.R., Gerhart, B., & Wright, P.M. (2011). Fundamentals of Human Resource Management. New York: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
O'Dea, B., O'Connor, P., Lydon, S., & Murphy, A. W. (2017). Prevalence of бърнаут among Irish general practitioners: a cross-sectional study. Irish journal of medical science, 186(2), 447–453.
Olanrewaju, A.S., & Chineye, O.J. (2013). Gender differences in бърнаут among health workers in the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital Ado-Ekiti. International Journal of Social and Behavioural Sciences, 1(6), 112-121.
Panagopoulou, E., Montgomery, A., & Benos, A. (2006). Бърнаут in internal medicine physicians: Differences between residents and specialists. European journal of internal medicine, 17(3), 195–200.
Prins, J. T., van der Heijden, F. M., Hoekstra-Weebers, J. E., Bakker, A. B., van de Wiel, H. B., Jacobs, B., & Gazendam-Donofrio, S. M. (2009). Бърнаут, engagement and resident physicians' self-reported errors. Psychology, health & medicine, 14(6), 654–666.
Rennert, M., Hagoel, L., Epstein, L., & Shifroni, G. (1990). The care of family physicians and their families: a study of health and help-seeking behaviour. Family practice, 7(2), 96–99.
Sharma, A., Sharp, D.M., Walker, L.G., & Monson, J.R,T. (2007). Stress and бърнаут among colorectal surgeons and colorectal nurse specialists working in the National Health Service. Colorectal Disease, 10, 397-406
Sharma, A., Sharp, D. M., Walker, L. G., & Monson, J. R. (2008). Stress and бърнаут in colorectal and vascular surgical consultants working in the UK National Health Service. Psycho-oncology, 17(6), 570–576.
Streu, R., Hansen, J., Abrahamse, P., & Alderman, A. K. (2014). Professional бърнаут among US plastic surgeons: results of a national survey. Annals of plastic surgery, 72(3), 346–350.
Swider, B.W. & Zimmerman, R.D. (2010) Born to Бърнаут: A Meta-Analytic Path Model of Personality, Job Бърнаут, and Work Outcomes. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 76, 487-506.
Tunc, T., & Kutanis, R. O. (2009). Role conflict, role ambiguity, and бърнаут in nurses and physicians at a university hospital in Turkey. Nursing & health sciences, 11(4), 410–416.
Upton, D., Mason, V., Doran, B., Solowiej, K., Shiralkar, U., & Shiralkar, S. (2012). The experience of бърнаут across different surgical specialties in the United Kingdom: a cross-sectional survey. Surgery, 151(4), 493–501.
Vanagas, G., Bihari-Axelsson, S., & Vanagiene, V. (2004). Do age, gender and marital status influence job strain development for general practitioner?. Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania), 40(10), 1014–1018.
Vodanović, M., Galić, I., Kelmendi, J., & Chalas, R. (2017). Occupational health hazards in contemporary dentistry – a review. Medical Sciences, 44, 25 – 41.
