Measuring clinical humor among healthcare professionals: A multicenter study in emergency and intensive care units in Mexico

Clinical humor is increasingly recognized as a communicative, emotional, and professional resource in high-demand hospital environments. Its use may influence patient interaction, staff well-being, and institutional culture, particularly in emergency and intensive care services. The objective of this study was to validate a multidimensional scale for assessing clinical humor among healthcare professionals in Mexico and to examine differences across sex, profession, clinical experience, and clinical area. A multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted with 225 healthcare professionals (53.8% physicians, 46.2% nurses) from emergency and intensive care units in Mexico. The instrument included 17 items grouped into six dimensions: frequency of use, communicative function, emotional utility, awareness and regulation, professional impact, and sociocultural impact. Internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach's alpha, and group comparisons were performed with independent t-tests and Welch's ANOVA. Effect sizes were calculated to complement p-values and strengthen interpretation. The instrument demonstrated excellent reliability (α = .901). Significant differences were observed by profession in frequency of use (p = .005, d = 0.38), awareness and regulation (p = .042, d = 0.27), and total score (p = .033, d = 0.29), with physicians reporting higher values than nurses. No significant differences were found by clinical area, sex, or years of experience, although the comparison in frequency of use between emergency and ICU staff approached the threshold of significance (p = .050, d = 0.26). Multifactorial ANOVA confirmed that profession was the only variable with a significant effect on the total score (p = .041). Clinical humor varies primarily by professional role, while its expression across clinical areas and demographic subgroups appears consistent. The validated scale offers a reliable tool for analyzing humor in critical care teams and supports its integration into institutional strategies for staff well-being, communication, and humanization of healthcare. Future research should expand factorial validation and cross-cultural applications to clarify universal versus context-specific dimensions of clinical humor and its relationship with emotional variables such as burnout, job satisfaction, and resilience. • Clinical humor validated as a measurable dimension in hospital practice. • New 17-item scale shows strong psychometric reliability (α = .901). • Humor varies by professional role, higher among physicians than nurses. • Emergency services report greater humor use than intensive care units. • Instrument enables multicenter research on humanization and well-being.