[Burnout among elderly care staff. A review of its prevalence]

Abstract

Provision of inpatient elderly care is characterized by factors that favor the onset of burnout, with psychosomatic complaints, a drop in performance, periods of absence due to sickness, and early retirement from the sector regularly being observed in this respect. This study summarizes the research of the past 11 years, regarding the prevalence of burnout among inpatient elderly care employees. A total of 24 studies were identified during a systematic database search conducted in May 2011. As the studies conceptualize burnout differently and are based on different survey tools, it is not possible to draw a clear conclusion regarding its prevalence. There is empirical evidence of a correlation between burnout and the care staff/patient ratio, workloads, the freedom to make decisions, job satisfaction, and neuroticism. There is no confirmation of a correlation between burnout and marital status, income, or shift work. There are contradictory findings regarding the correlation between burnout and sociodemographic aspects (e.g., age and gender) as well as burnout and the type of care institution, working hours, and violence perpetrated by patients.