Association between burnout and PTSD, and perceived stress in the workplace among healthcare workers in the intensive care unit: a PsyCOVID-ICU substudy

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed intensive care unit (ICU) healthcare workers (HCWs) to acute stress (e.g. unpredictability, fear, helplessness) and chronic stress (e.g. prolonged crisis with recurring waves). While the psychological impact has been documented, few studies explore the overlap of these stressors. One year after the pandemic's first peak, we aimed to assess the psychotraumatic impact and burnout among ICU HCW and to examine the relationship between these disorders, and perceived workplace stressors. This study was conducted in 77 ICUs in France between June and July 2021. The online questionnaire included measures of perceived stress, burnout, and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Descriptive analyses investigating the co-occurrence of PTSD/burnout symptoms were conducted and multinomial logistic regression was used to predict membership in these groupings from current perceived stress and a range of relevant demographic variables. Among 1108 hCW included, 318 (28.7%) exhibited only burnout, 34 (3.07%) exhibited only PTSD, and 182 (16.42%) exhibited both conditions simultaneously. These categories of professionals, particularly those with concurrent PTSD and burnout, perceived higher work-related stress than those without burnout and PTSD. These results can be used to provide personalized support for the specific psychological disorders present (burnout or PTSD), with a view to providing HCW with a work environment that is more conducive to their psychological recovery.Clinical trial registrationNCT04944394.