[Workload, burnout and need to recover among female residents in internal medicine and family medicine]

Abstract

Background: The Israeli medical residents' workload in hospitals is enormous, especially in the internaL wards, due to a severe lack of manpower and the demand to carry out many shifts. The workload of residents who practice in the community is rising as well: family physicians are required to achieve quality objectives in treating chronic diseases while the time dedicated to each patient is shortening. Creating a family usually parallels to this phase, causing home-work conflict among the residents. Consequently, the residents are Liable to develop burnout during their internship.

Aims: Quantification and characterization of the need to recover from workload among internal ward resident mothers with young children, compared to family medicine resident mothers with young children, and to investigate the relation between workload and the development of burnout in those groups.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted comparing 30 female internal ward residents with young children to 38 female family medicine residents with young children, by using workload, burnout, sleep quality and need to recover questions.

Results: Although the workload reported by female internal ward residents was higher than that reported by family medicine residents [p < 0.01, t = 2.73), no differences were found in the need for recovery and the extent of the burnout. Positive correlations were found between the workload and the burnout (p < 0.05, r = 0.30), the workload and the need for recovery (p < 0.001, r = 0.58) and between the burnout and the need for recovery (p < 0.001, r = 0.67].

Discussion: It seems that both groups are equally burned-out and need to recover after work. Our article calls for improvement of working conditions in both residencies.