Influence of work and family environment on burnout among emergency medical technicians

Haruna, Junpei; Uemura, Shuji; Taguchi, Yukiko; Muranaka, Saori; Niiyama, Sachi; Inamura, Hirotoshi; Sawamoto, Keigo; Mizuno, Hirotoshi; Narimatsu, Eichi

doi:2023.10.3.287

Clin Exp Emerg Med > Volume 10(3); 2023 > Article

Original Article

Clinical and Experimental Emergency Medicine 2023;10(3): 287-295. doi: https://doi.org/10.15441/ceem.22.389

Influence of work and family environment on burnout among emergency medical technicians

Junpei Haruna^1,2

, Shuji Uemura^1,3, Yukiko Taguchi^1,4, Saori Muranaka^1,5, Sachi Niiyama^1,5, Hirotoshi Inamura^1,6, Keigo Sawamoto^1,3

, Hirotoshi Mizuno^1,3, Eichi Narimatsu^1,3

¹Department of Emergency Medical Services, Life Flight and Disaster Medicine, Sapporo Medical University, Sapporo, Japan
²Department of Intensive Care Medicine, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
³Department of Emergency Medicine, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
⁴Department of Nursing, Sapporo Medical University School of Health Sciences, Sapporo, Japan
⁵Department of Advanced Critical Care and Emergency Center, Sapporo Medical University Hospital, Sapporo, Japan
⁶Department of Hospital Pharmacy, Sapporo Medical University Hospital, Sapporo, Japan

Correspondence Junpei Haruna Email: jp.haruna@hotmail.co.jp

Received: October 23, 2022. Revised: January 9, 2023. Accepted: January 31, 2023. Published online: February 16, 2023.

ABSTRACT

Objective
Burnout among emergency medical technicians is a serious problem affecting delivery of quality emergency medical services. Although the repetitive nature of the job and lower education level requirements for technicians have been reported as risk factors, little is known about the influence of burden of responsibility, degree of supervisor support, and home environment on burnout among emergency medical technicians. This study aimed to test the hypothesis that burden of responsibility, degree of supervisor support, and home environment increase burnout probability.
Methods
A web-based survey was conducted among emergency medical technicians in Hokkaido, Japan from July 26, 2021 to September 13, 2021. A total of 21 facilities were randomly selected from 42 fire stations. Prevalence of burnout was measured using the Maslach Burnout-Human Services Survey Inventory (MBI-HSS). Burden of responsibility was measured using a visual analog scale. Occupational background was also measured. Supervisor support was measured using the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire (BJSQ). Family-work negative spillover was measured using the Japanese version of Survey Work–Home Interaction–NijmeGen (SWING). The cutoff value for burnout syndrome was defined as emotional exhaustion≥27 and/or depersonalization≥10.
Results
A total of 700 survey respondents were included, and 27 surveys with missing data were excluded. The suspected burnout frequency was 25.6%. Covariates were adjusted using multilevel logistic regression model analysis. Low supervisor support (odds ratio, 1.421; 95% confidence interval, 1.136–1.406; P<0.001) and high family-work negative spillover (odds ratio, 1.264; 95% confidence interval, 1.285–1.571; P<0.001) were independent factors associated with higher probability of burnout.
Conclusion
This study indicated that focusing on improvement of supervisor support for emergency medical technicians and creating supportive home environments may assist in reducing burnout frequency.

Keywords: Psychological burnout; Emergency medical technicians; Home environment