Burnout of healthcare professionals in supportive and palliative care: a summary of recent literature.

Abstract

Purpose of review: Burnout is a complex phenomenon where several personal and work-related factors interact with each other. Palliative care is a challenging branch of healthcare, which can be especially demanding for the professionals providing it. This review presents an overview of the most recent literature on causes, identification, and consequences of burnout as well as articles on interventions to reduce burnout in the professional palliative healthcare provider setting.

Recent findings: With a few exceptions, research on burnout in the palliative care provider setting is focused on further insight on the different aspects that cause burnout on an individual, social, and organizational level. Unfortunately, only a few studies were found on interventions to prevent burnout. While the results of these interventions were promising, long-term results or data on how these diminish actual healthcare provider dropout were not available.

Summary: Research on burnout faced by palliative healthcare professionals seems to focus mainly on gaining further insight of different aspects of the complex syndrome that is burnout and how different individual, social, and organizational factors interact with each other. Further research on the prevention and treatment of burnout is necessary.