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Burnout Among Anesthesiologists: It׳s Time for Action!

In the present issue of the Journal of Cardiothoracic and 1 Vascular Anesthesia, Sanfilippo et al. report the results of a survey on the incidence of burnout among cardiac anesthesiologists in Italy. Level of burnout was assessed with the Maslach Burnout Inventory test, which evaluates the 3 main constituents of burnout: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal achievement. The results of the study are alarming: 34% of the respondents scored high or moderate high for being at risk for emotional exhaustion, 54% for depersonalization, and 66% for personal achievement. This means that more than one-third of Italian cardiac anesthesiologists are suffering from some degree of burnout. Although one might argue that this is not an international survey and a bias might have occurred in that individuals prone to or suffering from burnout symptoms would have been more willing to respond to the survey, the numbers clearly indicate we are dealing with a serious problem of emotional wellbeing among professional healthcare workers. There is no a priori reason why this situation would not be similar in other countries and in other anesthetic subspecialties. This brings us to the core issue of the problem. Burnout not only negatively affects the physician's professional behavior but also patient care. So, it should be one of the prime aims of departmental chairs, hospital directions, and social healthcare systems to prevent burnout to occur and, if it does, recognize the symptoms as soon as possible and promptly start treatment. This is easier said than done. Although individual-focused intervention programs such as stress management, self-care training, and communication skills training have been associated with small improvements, it seems that organization-directed interventions are associated with higher treatment effects. This underscores the importance of preventive strategies that may help to reduce the risk of development of burnout during one's professional career. Sanfilippo et al. identified the preference to remain in cardiac anesthesiology and parenthood as the only 2 investigated factors in their study with a protective effect against all components of