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Review
. 2023 Jul 4:10:1184526.
doi: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1184526. eCollection 2023.

Veterinarian burnout demographics and organizational impacts: a narrative review

Michele A Steffey  1 , Dominique J Griffon  2 , Marije Risselada  3 , Valery F Scharf  4 , Nicole J Buote  5 , Helia Zamprogno  6 , Alexandra L Winter  7
Affiliations
Review

Veterinarian burnout demographics and organizational impacts: a narrative review

Michele A Steffey et al. Front Vet Sci. .

Abstract

Burnout is a work-related syndrome of physical and emotional exhaustion secondary to prolonged, unresolvable occupational stress. Individuals of different demographic cohorts may have disparate experiences of workplace stressors and burnout impacts. Healthcare organizations are adversely affected by burnt out workers through decreased productivity, low morale, suboptimal teamwork, and potential impacts on the quality of patient care. In this second of two companion reviews, the demographics of veterinary burnout and the impacts of burnout on affected individuals and work environments are summarized, before discussing mitigation concepts and their extrapolation for targeted strategies within the veterinary workplace and profession.

Keywords: burnout; occupational stress; practice management; veterinary; wellbeing.

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Conflict of interest statement

AW is employed by Merck and Co. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The progression of burnout in an individual employee; individual and organizational impacts. Adapted from information presented by de Hert (142).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Hierarchy of Controls Applied to NIOSH Total Worker Health (170). An applied model of the traditional hierarchy of controls used in occupational safety and health that emphasizes organizational-level interventions to protect workers' safety, health, and wellbeing. Workplace programs using a total worker health approach should emphasize elimination (the top of the hierarchy) or control of workplace safety and health hazards as the primary goal. Hazards that cannot be eliminated must be managed through engineering, administrative, or, as the very last resort, individual-level interventions. Addressing environmental determinants of health rather than focusing on individual-level ones (the bottom of the hierarchy) is a crucial concept. This figure is minimally adapted from materials developed by the CDC. The unaltered material and additional resources are available on the CDC website (NIOSH TWH website) for no charge. Use of this material does not imply endorsement of this manuscript by the CDC or United States government.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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