Evaluating the burnout syndrome among medical students of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece: A cross-sectional study

Konstantinos Angelopoulos^1*Georgia Nektaria Porfyri²Angelos Ntikos³Ioanna Chioti⁴Chrysovalantis Fagogenis⁵Vasiliki Tarantili⁶Anastasia Konsta⁷

• ¹Primary Medical Service, Medical Corps, Hellenic Army, Symi, Greece
• ²MSc “Global Health - Disaster Medicine”, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
• ³Medical Corps, Military School of Combat Support Officers, Thessaloniki, Greece
• ⁴Faculty of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
• ⁵Graduate of Statistical and Insurance Science, University of Piraeus, Piraeus, Greece
• ⁶MSc “Health Institutions and Health Policies”, University of Peloponnese, Corinth, Greece
• ⁷1st Psychiatric Clinic, Papageorgiou Hospital, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki,, Thessaloniki, Greece

The burnout syndrome was first evaluated in the working environment of pilots and air-traffic controllers in 1973 and was officially described in scientific terms by the Psychologist Christina Maslach. Recent research proves that the syndrome is currently present in health care professionals worldwide, while it makes us wondering whether it is also present in the medical students’ community which faces main characteristics of the syndrome from the beginning of their educational career. The research was conducted on a sample of 400 Greek medical students in Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, using the Maslach Basic Inventory questionnaire providing three sections: exhaustion, depersonalization and low satisfaction for personal achievements. The sample was analyzed based on parameters of gender and the year of studies of each individual participant. 33.5% of participants were found to have a high risk or tendency for the Burnout Syndrome, 11.75% of whom are at high risk and suffer from the syndrome. The tendency for suffering regards the 21.75% of participants. No remarkable correlation was discovered for gender variable whereas the year of studies shows an important correlation with the more senior years (5th,6th) to demonstrate a percentage of higher risk. The syndrome’s prevalence carried from the survey is scientifically important, urging the academic community to examine whether instead of shaping healthy doctors, in reality produces patients of the syndrome. Protective measures include CBT, mindfulness, the six-stage adult learning technique, periodical screening of the syndrome, as well as encouragement for higher personal achievements.