A national survey on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic upon burnout and career satisfaction among neurosurgery residents
Open accessAbstract
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has posed significant changes to resident education and workflow. However, the impact of the pandemic on U.S. neurosurgery residents has not been well characterized. We investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on U.S. neurosurgery resident workflow, burnout, and career satisfaction. In 2020, a survey evaluating factors related to career satisfaction and burnout was emailed to 1,374 American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) residents. Bivariate and multivariate (logistic) analyses were performed to characterize predictors of burnout and career satisfaction. 167 survey responses were received, with a response rate (12.2%) comparable to that of similar studies. Exclusion of incomplete responses yielded 111complete responses. Most respondents were male (65.8%) and White (75.7%). Residents reported fewer work hours (67.6%) and concern that COVID-19 would impair theirachievement of surgical milestones (65.8%). Burnout was identified in 29 (26.1%) respondents and career satisfaction in 82 (73.9%) respondents. In multivariate analysis, burnout was significantly associated with alterations in elective rotation/vacation schedules (p = .013) and the decision to not pursue neurosurgery again if given the choice (p < .001). Higher post-graduate year was associated with less burnout (p = .011). Residents displayed greater career satisfaction when focusing their clinical work upon neurosurgical care (p = .065). Factors related to COVID-19 have contributed to workflow changes among U.S. neurosurgery residents. We report a moderate burnout rate and a paradoxically high career satisfaction rate among neurosurgery residents. Understanding modifiable stressors during the COVID-19pandemic may help to formulate interventions to mitigate burnout and improve career satisfaction among residents.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
The measurement of experienced burnout
Maslach, C., & Jackson, S. E. (1981) · Journal of Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1002/job.4030020205 · Cited by 14,496 · see citing works
Lai, J., Ma, S., Wang, Y., Cai, Z., Hu, J., Wei, N., Wu, J., Du, H., Chen, T., Li, R., et al. (2020) · JAMA Network Open · doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.3976 · Cited by 8,015 · see citing works
Burnout and Medical Errors Among American Surgeons
Shanafelt, T. D., Balch, C. M., Bechamps, G., Russell, T., Dyrbye, L., Satele, D., Collicott, P., Novotny, P. J., Sloan, J., & Freischlag, J. (2010) · Annals of Surgery · doi:10.1097/sla.0b013e3181bfdab3 · Cited by 2,099 · see citing works
Dyrbye, L. N., West, C. P., Satele, D., Boone, S., Tan, L., Sloan, J., & Shanafelt, T. D. (2014) · Academic Medicine · doi:10.1097/acm.0000000000000134 · Cited by 2,040 · see citing works
A narrative review on burnout experienced by medical students and residents
Dyrbye, L., & Shanafelt, T. (2016) · Medical Education · doi:10.1111/medu.12927 · Cited by 1,134 · see citing works
Rossi, R., Socci, V., Pacitti, F., Di Lorenzo, G., Di Marco, A., Siracusano, A., & Rossi, A. (2020) · JAMA Network Open · doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.10185 · Cited by 1,086 · see citing works
Physician Satisfaction and Burnout at Different Career Stages
Dyrbye, L. N., Varkey, P., Boone, S. L., Satele, D., Sloan, J. A., & Shanafelt, T. D. (2013) · Mayo Clinic Proceedings · doi:10.1016/j.mayocp.2013.07.016 · Cited by 576 · see citing works
McManus, I. C., Keeling, A. N., & PAICE, E. W. (2004) · BMC Medicine · doi:10.1186/1741-7015-2-29 · Cited by 558 · see citing works
Surgeon burnout: a systematic review
Dimou, F. M., Eckelbarger, D., & Riall, T. S. (2016) · Journal of the American College of Surgeons · doi:10.1016/j.jamcollsurg.2016.03.022 · Cited by 404 · see citing works
Burnout and Stress Among US Surgery Residents: Psychological Distress and Resilience
Lebares, C. C., Guvva, E. V., Ascher, N. L., O’Sullivan, P., Harris, H. W., & Epel, E. S. (2017) · Journal of the American College of Surgeons · doi:10.1016/j.jamcollsurg.2017.10.010 · Cited by 402 · see citing works
The causal links between stress and burnout in a longitudinal study of UK doctors
McManus, I., Winder, B., & Gordon, D. (2002) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(02)08915-8 · Cited by 376 · see citing works
Factors associated with burnout among US neurosurgery residents: a nationwide survey
Attenello, F. J., Buchanan, I. A., Wen, T., Donoho, D. A., McCartney, S., Cen, S. Y., Khalessi, A. A., Cohen-Gadol, A. A., Cheng, J. S., Mack, W. J., et al. (2018) · Journal of Neurosurgery · doi:10.3171/2017.9.jns17996 · Cited by 145 · see citing works
McAbee, J. H., Ragel, B. T., McCartney, S., Jones, G. M., Michael, L. M., DeCuypere, M. G., Cheng, J. S., Boop, F. A., & Klimo, P. D. (2015) · Journal of neurosurgery · doi:10.3171/2014.12.jns141348 · Cited by 141 · see citing works
Editorial. Impact of COVID-19 on neurosurgery resident training and education
Bambakidis, N. C., & Tomei, K. L. (2020) · Journal of neurosurgery · doi:10.3171/2020.3.jns20965 · Cited by 111 · see citing works
Khusid, J. A., Weinstein, C., Becerra, A. Z., Kashani, M., Robins, D. J., Fink, L. E., Smith, M. T., & Weiss, J. P. (2020) · International Journal of Clinical Practice · doi:10.1111/ijcp.13559 · Cited by 106 · see citing works
Relationship of Grit and Resilience to Burnout Among U.S. Neurosurgery Residents
Shakir, H. J., Cappuzzo, J. M., Shallwani, H., Kwasnicki, A., Bullis, C., Wang, J., Hess, R. M., & Levy, E. I. (2020) · World Neurosurgery · doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2019.10.043 · Cited by 99 · see citing works
Impact of COVID-19 on an Academic Neurosurgery Department: The Johns Hopkins Experience
Khalafallah, A. M., Jimenez, A. E., Lee, R. P., et al. (2020) · World Neurosurgery · doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2020.05.167 · Cited by 98 · see citing works
Self-citationEichberg, D. G., Shah, A. H., Luther, E., Menendez, I., Jimenez, A., Perez-Dickens, M., O’Phelan, K. H., Ivan, M. E., Komotar, R. J., & Levi, A. D. (2020) · Neurosurgery · doi:10.1093/neuros/nyaa118 · Cited by 74 · see citing works
The Prevalence of Burnout Among US Neurosurgery Residents
Shakir, H. J., McPheeters, M. J., Shallwani, H., Pittari, J. E., & Reynolds, R. M. (2018) · Neurosurgery · doi:10.1093/neuros/nyx494 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
Pelargos, P. E., Chakraborty, A. R., Zhao, Y. D., et al. (2020) · World Neurosurgery · doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2020.05.263 · Cited by 64 · see citing works
Analysis of national trends in neurosurgical resident attrition
Agarwal, N., White, M. D., Pannullo, S. C., & Chambless, L. B. (2019) · Journal of neurosurgery · doi:10.3171/2018.5.jns18519 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
Song, Y., Swendiman, R. A., Shannon, A. B., Torres-Landa, S., Khan, F. N., Williams, N. N., Dumon, K. R., Brooks, A. D., DeMatteo, R. P., & Aarons, C. B. (2020) · Journal of Surgical Education · doi:10.1016/j.jsurg.2020.04.014 · Cited by 42 · see citing works
Neurosurgery Resident Wellness and Recovery from Burnout: A 39-Year Single-Institution Experience
Tang, O. Y., Dunn, K. A., Yoon, J. S., Ponce, F. A., Sonntag, V. K. H., & Lawton, M. T. (2020) · World Neurosurgery · doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2020.01.236 · Cited by 40 · see citing works
Letter: Adaptation Under Fire: Two Harvard Neurosurgical Services During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Arnaout, O. M., Patel, A., Carter, B. S., & Chiocca, E. A. (2020) · Neurosurgery · doi:10.1093/neuros/nyaa146 · Cited by 39 · see citing works
Letter: Maintaining Neurosurgical Resident Education and Safety During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Bray, D. P., Stricsek, G. P., Malcolm, J. G., Gutierrez, J., Greven, A. C. M., Barrow, D. L., Rodts, G. E., Gary, M. F., & Refai, D. (2020) · Neurosurgery · doi:10.1093/neuros/nyaa164 · Cited by 38 · see citing works
Pennington, Z. A., Lubelski, D., Khalafallah, A. M., Ehresman, J., Sciubba, D. M., Witham, T. F., & Huang, J. (2020) · World Neurosurgery · doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2020.05.139 · Cited by 31 · see citing works
Self-citationWolfe, S. Q., West, J. L. W., Hunt, M. A., Murad, G. J. A., Fox, W. C., Dow, J. S., Morone, P. J., Wellons, J. C., Podet, A. G., Wilson, J., et al. (2018) · Neurosurgery · doi:10.1093/neuros/nyy418 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
Managing a Specialty Service During the COVID-19 Crisis: Lessons From a New York City Health System
Ammar, A., Stock, A. D., Holland, R., Gelfand, Y. J., & Altschul, D. (2020) · Academic Medicine · doi:10.1097/acm.0000000000003440 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
Editorial. COVID-19 and neurosurgical practice: an interim report
Amin‐Hanjani, S., Bambakidis, N. C., Barker, F. G., et al. (2020) · Journal of neurosurgery · doi:10.3171/2020.4.jns201099 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
Telemedicine and remote medical education within neurosurgery
Planchard, R. F., Lubelski, D., Ehresman, J., et al. (2020) · Journal of Neurosurgery Spine · doi:10.3171/2020.5.spine20786 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Weber, A. C., Henderson, F. C., Santos, J. L. M., et al. (2020) · Neurosurgery · doi:10.1093/neuros/nyaa166 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Theofanis, T. N., Khanna, O., Stefanelli, A., et al. (2020) · Neurosurgery · doi:10.1093/neuros/nyaa211 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Are Neurosurgery Residents Burned Out?
Pan, J., & Mocco, J. (2018) · World Neurosurgery · doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2018.06.131 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Lluch, C., Galiana, L., Doménech, P., & Sansó, N. (2022) · Healthcare · doi:10.3390/healthcare10020364 · Cited by 281 · see citing works
“Khalafallah et al. (2020a) [74] Investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the workflow, burnout, and career satisfaction of neurosurgery residents in the US.”
BackgroundInfluentialFainstad, T., Mann, A., Suresh, K., Shah, P., Dieujuste, N., Thurmon, K., & Jones, C. D. (2022) · JAMA Network Open · doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.10752 · Cited by 148 · see citing works
Delaney, R. K., Locke, A., Pershing, M. L., Geist, C., Clouse, E., Precourt Debbink, M., Haaland, B., Tanner, A. J., Anzai, Y., & Fagerlin, A. (2021) · JAMA Network Open · doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.3997 · Cited by 82 · see citing works
Daryanto, B., Rahmadiani, N., Amorga, R., Kautsarani, I., Susilo, H., & Persada Isma, S. P. (2022) · Clinical Epidemiology and Global Health · doi:10.1016/j.cegh.2022.100994 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Navinés, R., Olive, V., Hidalgo-Mazzei, D., Langohr, K., Vieta, E., & Martin-Santos, R. (2024) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1286101 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
- Authors
- Khalafallah, A. M., Lam, S., Gami, A., Dornbos, D. L., Sivakumar, W., Johnson, J. N., & Mukherjee, D.
- Affiliations
- Johns Hopkins University (US)
- Semmes Murphey Foundation (US)
- Baylor College of Medicine (US)
- Corresponding author
- Mukherjee, Debraj
- ORCID
- Venue
- Journal of Clinical Neuroscience
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2020-10
- Volume
- 80
- Pages
- 137-142
- ISSN
- 0967-5868 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC7438065
- OpenAlex
- W3049044243
- Cited by
- 101
- References
- 33
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 26 · 2022: 25 · 2021: 22 · 2020: 1 · 2015: 1 · 2014: 1
- FWCI
- 19.31
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Journal of Clinical Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Healthcare professionals’ stress and burnout
- Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Diversity and Career in Medicine
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › COVID-19 and Mental Health
- Keywords
- COVID-19 pandemic, burnout, career satisfaction, neurosurgery residents, surgical residency, surgical milestones, resident well-being, career change intentions
- MeSH terms
- Betacoronavirus, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Adult, Burnout, Professional, Female, Humans, Internship and Residency, Job Satisfaction, Male, Neurosurgery, Pneumonia, Viral, Surveys and Questionnaires, United States, Coronavirus Infections, Pandemics
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
