Summary
The analyzed article “Which occupational risk factors are associated with burnout in nursing? A meta-analytic study.” was written by Vargas, Cañadas, Aguayo, Fernández, and de la Fuente. It was published in the International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology in 2014. The research aimed to assess the impact of five factors affecting nurses (professional experience, length of service, job satisfaction, work shift and specialization) on three possible causes of burnout: mental exhaustion, depersonalization and personal problems. The researchers conducted an analysis with 81 studies that met all the selection criteria: 31 on the time of work as a nurse; 29 on experience; 37 on job satisfaction; 4 on specialization; and 6 on the number of shifts.
Critique
Data collection in this quantitative study took place in several stages, in which the authors considered each of the 3,386 sources from different perspectives, but ultimately only 81 reviews were used. In some other later articles, the number of sources was relatively the same (O’Connor, Neff, & Pitman, 2018). The authors used a system of calculations that allowed them to derive average information about the main factors affecting the occurrence of burnout syndrome in nurses, as well as in other studies (Salyers et al., 2017; Gómez-Urquiza, Emilia et al., 2017).
The validity of the method used is described by Vargas et al. (2014) as “the need for further research that can provide a better understanding of the contradictory results that have been obtained in previous works” (p. 29). According to the later source, in the creation of which one of the authors of the analyzed article participated, there are other factors among those that affect burnout in nurses, such as age (Gómez‐Urquiza, Vargas, 2017).
Conclusion
The results of the study were interpreted according to the strategy of the researchers. By the obtained and processed data, the authors concluded that the personal work-related factors reflect a clear relationship between burnout and job satisfaction. The design of the article corresponds to its goals and objectives. This article and the research information it contains are of significant value to the international nursing community because it confirms the assumptions about the impact of working conditions on the probability of burnout. This experience is interesting not only from medical practice but also has a direct bearing on all employees with a high degree of responsibility.
References
Gómez-Urquiza, J. L., Emilia, I., Albendín-García, L., Vargas-Pecino, C., Ortega-Campos, E. M., & Cañadas-De la Fuente, G. A. (2017). Prevalence of burnout syndrome in emergency nurses: A meta-analysis. Critical Care Nurse, 37(5), e1-e9.
Gómez‐Urquiza, J. L., Vargas, C., De la Fuente, E. I., Fernández‐Castillo, R., & Cañadas‐De la Fuente, G. A. (2017). Age as a risk factor for burnout syndrome in nursing professionals: A meta‐analytic study. Research in Nursing & Health, 40(2), 99-110.
O’Connor, K., Neff, D. M., & Pitman, S. (2018). Burnout in mental health professionals: A systematic review and meta-analysis of prevalence and determinants. European Psychiatry, 53, 74-99.
Salyers, M. P., Bonfils, K. A., Luther, L., Firmin, R. L., White, D. A., Adams, E. L., & Rollins, A. L. (2017). The relationship between professional burnout and quality and safety in healthcare: A meta-analysis. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 32(4), 475-482.
Vargas, C., Cañadas, G. A., Aguayo, R., Fernández, R., & de la Fuente, E. (2014). Which occupational risk factors are associated with burnout in nursing? A meta-analytic study. International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 14(1), 28-38. Web.