Objectives: To investigate the prevalence of burnout among Dutch young and more experienced dental hygienists and the work experience of young professional dental hygienists.
Material and methods: Two studies were carried out using the Dutch version of the Maslach Burnout Inventory; the Utrecht Burnout Scale (UBOS) and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES). In Study I, 400 participants completed an online questionnaire, including the UBOS-general version. In Study II, a questionnaire was distributed via social media to young professionals, including the UBOS-health care version and the UWES-9.
Results: 2.5% of 157 dental hygienists (Study I) satisfied the norm of burnout. Dental hygienists' average work experience was 16.6 years, and one-thirds worked 25-32 hours per week. In Study II, 73 young professionals (M = 26.5 years) reported 32.9 weekly working hours. Three-quarters were employed and worked in a dental clinical team practice. UWES-mean scores indicated a moderate to high level of work engagement. Mostly, all aspects of burnout were low compared with the test Manual norms.
Conclusions: Exploratory findings show that generally burnout appears no threat for Dutch dental hygienists, and moderate to high level of work engagement coincides with a low level of burnout-related symptoms.
Keywords: burnout; dental hygienists; employed and independently working dental hygienists; public health; work engagement; young professional.
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