Burnout among young Italian Internists: a cross-sectional study assessing prevalence and associated factors
Burnout among physicians is associated with poor productivity at work, dissatisfaction, and regrets about career choices. The present study aims to evaluate the prevalence of burnout and its main associated factors among young Italian Internists. An online survey assessing different aspects of training and working conditions of young internists was conducted across European countries by the Young Internists Group of the European Federation of Internal Medicine (EFIM). Only data from Italian respondents were analyzed in the present study. Data from 106 young Internists (aged < 40 years) working in university and non-teaching hospitals were abstracted. The median age was 30 years. Burnout was reported by 37.2% of the respondents. The main associated factors with burnout were being an Internal Medicine Resident, working in a university hospital, working extra hours than required by the hospital, managing both inpatients and outpatients, stress from inadequate time for social activities, and high workload. The absence of training or guidance on soft skills was also associated with burnout. Only 2.8% of the respondents reported the presence of a support system to deal with burnout in their hospitals. Burnout is very common among young Italian Internists with few support systems incorporated into the hospital set up. Holistic strategies to prevent or reduce burnout including modifying associated factors, should be implemented. Training for transversal skills should be added to the curriculum of internal medicine residents. Finally, a support system to deal with burnout should be present in every hospital.
Authors
- Giovanni Addolorato (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1522-9946)
- Giuseppe Augello
- Alberto M. Marra (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9679-3003)
- Rosanna Villani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9875-019X)
- Miguel Romano
- Tommaso Dionisi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2196-076X)
- Adwoa Agyei‐Nkansah (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4662-4591)
- Filomena Pietrantonio (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1119-0869)
- Giulia Crisci (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6629-9389)
- Mark L. Failla (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7666-8037)
- Andrea Salzano (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2352-2103)
- Gabriele Vassallo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9776-8870)
- Giulio Francesco Romiti (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3788-8942)
- Giovanni Talerico (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1746-0375)
- Davide Carrara
- Caterina Delcea (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7642-9290)
Institutions
- Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (IT)
- University of Foggia (IT)
- University of Ghana (GH)
- Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy (RO)
- University of Milan (IT)
- Azienda Ospedaliera San Giovanni Addolorata (IT)
- Agostino Gemelli University Polyclinic (IT)
- Ospedale Antonio Cardarelli (IT)
- ASL Roma (IT)
- Administração Regional de Saúde de Lisboa e Vale do Tejo (PT)
- Ospedale San Paolo (IT)
- Federico II University Hospital (IT)
- Ospedale Versilia (IT)
- Azienda Sanitaria Locale Roma 3 (IT)
- Lombardia Informatica (Italy) (IT)
- Sapienza University of Rome (IT)
- University of Minho (PT)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Internal and Emergency Medicine
- Published
- 2025-05-25
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s11739-025-03978-4
- Citations
- 2
- Primary Topic
- Healthcare professionals’ stress and burnout
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 5.63
Funders
- Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II
- Società Italiana di Medicina Interna