Burnout and occupational stress among Hungarian radiographers working in emergency and non-emergency departments during COVID-19 pandemic

David Sipos; Timea Jenei; Orsolya L Kövesdi; Pál Novák; Omar Freihat; József Tollár; Attila András Pandur; Árpád Kovács; Imre Repa; Melinda Petőné Csima

doi:10.1016/j.radi.2023.02.013

Burnout and occupational stress among Hungarian radiographers working in emergency and non-emergency departments during COVID-19 pandemic

Radiography (Lond). 2023 May;29(3):466-472. doi: 10.1016/j.radi.2023.02.013. Epub 2023 Feb 20.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medical Imaging, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pécs, Szent Imre Street 14/B, 7400 Kaposvár, Hungary; Dr. József Baka Diagnostic, Radiation Oncology, Research and Teaching Center, "Moritz Kaposi" Teaching Hospital, Guba Sándor Street 40, 7400 Kaposvár, Hungary. Electronic address: cpt.david.sipos@gmail.com.
² Department of Medical Imaging, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pécs, Szent Imre Street 14/B, 7400 Kaposvár, Hungary.
³ Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pécs, Vörösmarty 4, 7621 Pécs, Hungary.
⁴ Department of Medical Imaging, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pécs, Szent Imre Street 14/B, 7400 Kaposvár, Hungary; Dr. József Baka Diagnostic, Radiation Oncology, Research and Teaching Center, "Moritz Kaposi" Teaching Hospital, Guba Sándor Street 40, 7400 Kaposvár, Hungary.
⁵ Department of Oxyology, Emergency Care, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pécs, Vörösmarty 4, 7621 Pécs, Hungary.
⁶ Department of Medical Imaging, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pécs, Szent Imre Street 14/B, 7400 Kaposvár, Hungary; Department of Oncoradiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Debrecen, Nagyerdei 98, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary.
⁷ Department of Medical Imaging, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pécs, Szent Imre Street 14/B, 7400 Kaposvár, Hungary; Institute of Education, MATE - Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Guba Sándor Street 40, 7400 Kaposvár, Hungary.

Abstract

Introduction: The increased workload caused by the coronavirus pandemic may have had a significant impact on the mental health of radiographers. The aim of our study was to investigate burnout and occupational stress in radiographers working in emergency departments (ED) and non-emergency departments (NED).

Methods: Quantitative, cross-sectional, descriptive research was carried out among radiographers working in the public health sector in Hungary. Due to the cross-sectional nature of our survey, there was no overlap between the ED and NED groups. For data collection, we used simultaneously the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), the Effort-Reward Imbalance questionnaire (ERI), and our self-designed questionnaire.

Results: We excluded incomplete questionnaires from our survey; finally, 439 responses were evaluated. Significantly higher scores for depersonalisation (DP; 8.43 (SD = 6.69) vs. 5.63 (SD = 4.21) and emotional exhaustion (EE; 25.07 (SD = 11.41) vs. 19.72 (SD = 11.72)) were observed in radiographers working in ED (p = 0.001; p = 0.001) when compared to NED. Male radiographers working in ED aged 20-29 and 30-39 years with experience of 1-9 years were more affected by DP (p ≤ 0.05). Worrying about one's own health had a negative effect on DP and EE (p ≤ 0.05). Having close friend with a COVID-19 infection had a negative effect on EE (p ≤ 0.05); not being infected with coronavirus, not being quarantined and relocating within the workplace had a positive effect on personal accomplishment (PA); radiographers who were 50 years or older with 20-29 years of experience were more affected by depersonalisation (DP); and those who worried about their health had significantly higher stress scores (p ≤ 0.05) in both ED and NED settings.

Conclusion: Male radiographers at the beginning of their careers were more affected by burnout. Employment in EDs had a negative impact on DP and EE.

Implications for practice: Our results support the implementation of interventions to counter the effects of occupational stress and burnout among radiographers working in ED.

Keywords: Burnout; Coronavirus; ERI; Emergency; MBI; Mental health; Radiographer; Stress.

MeSH terms

Burnout, Professional* / epidemiology
Burnout, Professional* / psychology
COVID-19* / epidemiology
Cross-Sectional Studies
Humans
Hungary / epidemiology
Male
Occupational Stress* / epidemiology
Pandemics
Surveys and Questionnaires