Resident burnout trends during COVID-19: a retrospective observational study
Open accessAbstract
Objective This study was designed to assess the effects of the coronavirus disease pandemic on job satisfaction (JS) and burnout among surgical sub-specialty residents.Design This is a retrospective, observational, survey-based study. We administered a web-based questionnaire to surgical sub-specialty residents, and results were compared to a prior study in 2016. The questionnaire included elements on demographics, JS, burnout, and self-care habits. Basic statistical analyses were used to compare data from 2020 and 2016.Setting This study takes place at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, a single mid-sized New Jersey-based academic institution.Participants This survey was sent to all obstetrics and gynecology and general surgery residents from every postgraduate year based out of our institution. The survey was sent to a total of 50 residents across the 2 programs. Forty total residents responded to the survey, with a response rate of 80%.Results JS was significantly higher in 2020 than 2016 (p < 0.001). There were no differences between postgraduate years for 2020 or 2016 in emotional exhaustion (p = 0.29, p = 0.75), personal accomplishment (p = 0.88, p = 0.26), or depersonalization (p = 0.14, p = 0.59) burnout scores. A total of 0% of residents in 2020 worked fewer than 61 hours per week. Residents in 2020 exercised more (40.0% vs 21.6%), had similar alcohol usage (60%), and had similar diets to residents in 2016. Residents in 2020 were less likely to regret their specialty (7.5% vs 21.6%), consider changing residencies (30.0% vs 37.8%), or consider a career change (15.0% vs 45.9%).Conclusions JS scores were significantly higher during the coronavirus disease pandemic. The cancellation of elective surgeries led to a lighter workload for surgical residents. Residents were uncertain of their role during the pandemic, however, new stressors encouraged residents to seek alternative methods for personal wellness.
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Previous studies have documented increases in depersonalization in situations of chronic stress, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Previous studies have documented increases in depersonalization in situations of chronic stress, such as the COVID-19 pandemic (58)”
From Evolution of burnout syndrome in Spanish healthcare professionals during and after the COVID-19 pandemic: psychosocial variables involved (2025) · cites this paper as [58]
The Results (page unavailable) report a lower average depersonalization score during the COVID-19 pandemic than in 2016: 7.0 versus 13.0, not an increase. The Conclusions caution that different survey scales prevent a statistically valid comparison of burnout scores across those years; the paper therefore does not document the claimed increase. (LLM, conf=0.85)
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Gil-Almagro, F., Carmona-Monge, F. J., García-Hedrera, F. J., & Peñacoba-Puente, C. (2025) · Frontiers in Medicine · doi:10.3389/fmed.2025.1522134 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“Previous studies have documented increases in depersonalization in situations of chronic stress, such as the COVID-19 pandemic (58), but our study suggests that this dimension of burnout may be more related to long-term cognitive-emotional factors, such as hopelessness.”
Síndrome de Burnout em médicos residentes de anestesiologia: revisão da literatura
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- Authors
- Elwood, A. D., MaloneyPatel, N., & Hutchinson-Colas, J.
- Affiliations
- Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey (US)
- Corresponding author
- Elwood, Adam D.
- Hutchinson-Colas, Juana
- Venue
- Journal of surgical education
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2023-06
- Volume
- 80
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 846-852
- ISSN
- 1878-7452 (ISSN-L)
- 1931-7204
- PMC
- PMC9968607
- OpenAlex
- W4322217345
- Cited by
- 3
- References
- 8
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 1
- FWCI
- 1.06
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Journal of surgical education (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Healthcare professionals’ stress and burnout
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › COVID-19 and Mental Health
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Stress and Burnout Research
- Keywords
- burnout, job satisfaction, COVID-19 pandemic, surgical residents, emotional exhaustion, personal accomplishment, depersonalization, resident workload, elective surgery cancellation, self-care, physical activity, alcohol consumption, diet, career change intentions, resident well-being
- MeSH terms
- COVID-19, Burnout, Professional, Gynecology, Humans, Internship and Residency, Obstetrics, Surveys and Questionnaires
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