Occupational Exhaustion, Loss of Empathy and Personal Accomplishment Assessment among Healthcare Professionals of Karachi

Abstract

Background: Burnout (BO) is a pervasive outcome of prolonged exposure to work-related stress and is frequently observed among healthcare professionals, significantly affecting their performance and efficiency, consequently impacting the quality of care. This study aimed to assess the levels of occupational exhaustion, depersonalization/loss of empathy, and personal accomplishment among healthcare professionals in Pakistan.

Methods: This cross-sectional study involved healthcare professionals in Karachi City. The assessment of occupational exhaustion, depersonalization/loss of empathy, and personal accomplishment was conducted using The Maslach Burnout Inventory. Data were entered and analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 27.

Results: A total of 377 healthcare professionals from Karachi participated in the study. The mean scores for occupational exhaustion, loss of empathy, personal accomplishment assessment, and total burnout were 17.25±8.41, 7.56±4.28, 27.96±5.55, and 52.77±11.96, respectively. The study identified 9.3% of healthcare professionals experiencing a high degree of occupational exhaustion, 15.9% with a high degree of loss of empathy, and 2.4% with a high degree of personal accomplishment assessment. Notably, significant associations were observed between occupational exhaustion and gender and experience. Likewise, strong relationships were identified between loss of empathy and gender, professional experience, and hospital sector. Furthermore, a robust association was noted between personal accomplishment assessment and gender, age, professional experience, and hospital sector.

Conclusion: The study reveals a high prevalence of severe occupational exhaustion among healthcare professionals, with gender, experience, and the hospital sector significantly influencing levels of occupational exhaustion, loss of empathy, and personal accomplishment assessment.