Comparison of Nurse Burnout, Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Debra Sullivan; Virginia Sullivan; Deborah Weatherspoon; Christine Frazer

doi:10.1016/j.cnur.2021.11.006

Comparison of Nurse Burnout, Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Nurs Clin North Am. 2022 Mar;57(1):79-99. doi: 10.1016/j.cnur.2021.11.006. Epub 2021 Nov 9.

Authors

Debra Sullivan¹, Virginia Sullivan², Deborah Weatherspoon³, Christine Frazer³

Affiliations

¹ College of Nursing, Walden University, 100 Washington Avenue South, Suite 1210, Minneapolis, MN 55401, USA. Electronic address: Debra.sullivan@mail.waldenu.edu.
² General Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 110 Magnolia Circle, Room 407A, Nashville, TN 37203, USA.
³ College of Nursing, Walden University, 100 Washington Avenue South, Suite 1210, Minneapolis, MN 55401, USA.

Abstract

Pandemics are not new, but our global community allows the spread of disease to occur much more rapidly than ever before. The recent COVID-19 pandemic has placed nurses on the frontlines caring for contagious and acutely ill patients. Nurse burnout is not new either; however, these demands have put a strain on nurses, and nurse burnout has been reported as being at high levels. This article looks at a history of pandemics and examines the research related to nurse burnout during previous and the current COVID-19 pandemic. The authors conclude this article with recommendations for evidence-based interventions to decrease factors associated with nurse burnout.

Keywords: COVID-19; MBI; Nursing burnout; OBI; Pandemic.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Burnout, Professional* / epidemiology
Burnout, Psychological
COVID-19*
Humans
Pandemics
SARS-CoV-2
Surveys and Questionnaires