Resilience under pressure: Healthcare worker burnout in Lagos, Nigeria public healthcare facilities

BackgroundBurnout is a work-related syndrome that undermines healthcare worker well-being, patient safety and workforce retention. Nigeria's public health system operates with a physician-to-population ratio of about 1:5,000, and chronic understaffing, long working hours and limited institutional support place healthcare workers at substantial risk; multi-cadre evidence from Lagos State remains scarce.ObjectiveThis study aimed to assess the prevalence of burnout and coping strategies among healthcare workers in public healthcare facilities in Lagos, Nigeria.MethodsA descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted over six months, during which respondents were recruited from selected general hospitals in Lagos State. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire from 321 healthcare workers through a stratified random sampling. The data were cleaned and analysed using Epi Info version 7, with the significance level set at p < 0.05.ResultsThe majority (54.5%) of the respondents were less than 30 years old, with a mean age of 30.60 ± 7.47. About 57.9% of the respondents were female. More than one-third, 127 (39.5%) of respondents experienced a high level of burnout, while only 93 (29.0%) reported having a low level of burnout overall. Nearly two-thirds, 195 (60.7%) of respondents occasionally adjust their self-expectations, such as by delegating tasks or declining certain responsibilities, and a smaller group, 48 (15%), sometimes resorted to substances such as alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette smoking as coping methods. Marital status (p < 0.001), profession (p < 0.001), work experience (p < 0.001), and hours worked per week (p = 0.003) were statistically significantly associated with the prevalence of burnout among respondents.ConclusionsWith records of lower levels of personal achievements associated with a high rate of burnout, there is a need for the government and other stakeholders to take steps to address the incidence of burnout by improving working conditions for healthcare workers in healthcare facilities.