Burnout syndrome in primary health care professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Objective: this study verified the occurrence of signs and symptoms of Burnout Syndrome in health professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: this is a descriptive and quantitative study carried out with health professionals who worked in primary health care during the COVID-19 pandemic. A questionnaire consisting of two stages was applied, the first identifying sociodemographic conditions and the second adopting the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory scale. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results: 53 professionals took part, with an average age of 32.8 years, 86.8% of whom were women and 56.6% had higher education. In relation to the predictors of burnout syndrome, 59.6% of the professionals reported the presence of respect in the institution's internal relations, and 64.7% believed they had the opportunity to do meaningful work. Daily, the professionals presented symptoms resulting from their work activity, the most frequent being difficulty with memory and concentration (14.3%) and a state of continuous acceleration (8.7%). In addition, 30.2% of professionals fully agree that they need more time to recover after work; however, 32.1% consider work to be a positive challenge. Approximately 87.0% of the sample was affected by exhaustion, 83.0% by detachment, and 75.0% by Burnout Syndrome. Conclusion: the health professionals in this study were exposed to the risk of being affected by Burnout syndrome. In this context, health professionals who work during pandemics need support during this period to prevent the prevalence of psychological illnesses and enable greater capacity for adaptation and resilience.