Introduction:
Burnout in emergency medical personnel has been well-described in medical literature outside our country. We performed this study to measure burnout among medical personnel who work in emergency departments and on ambulances of the 112 system in Turkey.
Methods:
Maslach's Burnout Scale, General Health Questionnaire 12, and a demographic survey were administered to a convenience sample of 246 physicians working in emergency departments and on the provincial ambulances (the 112 ambulance service). Results: Working night shifts correlated with high levels of burnout. A low correlation between the General Health Questionnaire 12 and burnout was found. High levels of emotional exhaustion were found. Many physicians admitted to smoking.
Discussion:
Remedies should be implemented to prevent burnout syndrome in emergency personnel, and further long-term studies should be performed to measure their effectiveness.
Keywords: Burnout syndrome, emergency medicine