Abstract:
Background: Burnout is the physical, behavioural, and emotional condition stemming from
constant overwork and continual loss of career satisfaction. Higher nurse workload is associated
with burnout and job dissatisfaction, which can result in poor patient outcomes. Nurses may be
more vulnerable to burnout during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Objectives: To examine the burnout of ward nurses related to Covid-19.
Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted on a study sample of 152
participants, selected through convenient sampling. Maslach Burnout Inventory tool, validated
in Sri Lanka was used to collect data as an online form via social media platforms, among
nurses working in hospitals in the western province after receiving the ethical clearance from
BioInquirer Ethics Review Committee. The data were analyzed with SPSS version 25.0.
Results: Mean age of participants was 29±5 years. The number of days those nurses worked on
the weekend during the pandemic shows a 2% increase. In addition to that, 42% of the
participants were more worried about their family and friends getting infected by the virus than
themselves. Nearly half of the respondents (50.7%) were unhappy with the shift hours after the
Covid outbreak compared to before. Despite the difficulties/pandemic, 84.1% of participants
were not intending to leave the profession. Mean±SD of subscale scores for each subscale were
14±0.93 (Emotional Exhaustion; EE)), 4.40±1.30 (Depersonalization (D)); and 18.20±0.72
(Personal Accomplishment (PA)). This indicates that there is no significant level of burnout
among the nurses during the Covid-19 outbreak (cut-off values indicating moderate/high
burnout for EE >18, D>6, PA<33).
Conclusions: The findings suggest that the nurses' burnout levels were low in terms of EE and
D but high related to PA. Flexible work schedules for nurses may help them be more productive
and reduce the risk of burnout.
