Page 51 - JCBP-1-1

Journal of Clinical and
Basic Psychosomatics Emotional exhaustion and work–family conflict in physicians

Table 5. Effect size of WFC in prespecified and exploratory correlation between WFC and EE is the strongest, and
subgroups more consideration needs to be given to this part of the
population.
Characteristic No. β (95%CI) P P for
interaction This study had several limitations: The causality was
Sex (n, %) 0.001 elusive, and a longitudinal study was needed to elucidate
Male 1356 0.83 (0.77, 0.90) <0.001 the findings. High variance in EE at low levels of WFC
Female 1152 0.67 (0.59, 0.74) <0.001 might be caused by under-reporting WFC. Designs
Age (n, %) 0.299 improving sensitive data reporting rates could be helpful.
We focused on Chinese physicians, and the cultural factors
<25 113 0.89 (0.67, 1.10) <0.001 were not studied. Related psychological characteristics,
25 – 34 1233 0.78 (0.71, 0.85) <0.001 such as personal, were not investigated.
35 – 44 773 0.75 (0.66, 0.84) <0.001 These findings have several implications: First, the high
45 – 54 318 0.68 (0.53, 0.83) <0.001 levels of WFC are strongly correlated with EE. Therefore,
>54 77 0.57 (0.32, 0.81) <0.001 significant WFC among physicians may serve as a sign
Marital status 0.024 of burnout, whether identified using a questionnaire
Unmarried 546 0.87 (0.76, 0.98) <0.001 or recognized by supervisors and colleagues. Second,
Married 1962 0.73 (0.67, 0.78) <0.001 the relationship between WFC and EE was found to be
Education 0.007 strongest among unmarried male physicians, highly
educated and working in tertiary or general hospitals. It
Junior College 611 0.61 (0.50, 0.73) <0.001 highlighted urgent attention for this subgroup. Last but not
Undergraduate 1,339 0.75 (0.68, 0.82) <0.001 least, routine utilization of WFC and the Maslach Burnout
Postgraduate 552 0.85 (0.75, 0.95) <0.001 Inventory could be beneficial in assessing physicians to
Hospital Grade 0.027 detect burnout risk.
Tertiary hospital 1456 0.77 (0.71, 0.84) <0.001 5. Conclusion
Secondary Hospital 325 0.60 (0.44, 0.77) <0.001
Primary Hospital 749 0.63 (0.53, 0.73) <0.001 This study has revealed a U-shaped association between
Categories of hospitals 0.041 WFC and EE among Chinese physicians. Both high-level
and low-level WFCs increase the risk of EE. The present
General Hospital 2080 0.78 (0.72, 0.84) <0.001 study’s findings are potentially helpful in developing
Specialized Hospital 450 0.65 (0.54, 0.76) <0.001 measures to reduce burnout. Further studies, particularly
Department 0.809 longitudinal designs, are needed to illustrate the
Physician 1021 0.78 (0.70, 0.86) <0.001 mechanisms behind the association.
Surgeon 602 0.75 (0.65, 0.85) <0.001 Acknowledgments
Others 893 0.74 (0.66, 0.83) <0.001
Work experience 0.118 None.
<5 638 0.80 (0.70, 0.90) <0.001 Funding
5 – 10 560 0.76 (0.66, 0.86) <0.001
11 – 20 832 0.79 (0.70, 0.88) <0.001 This study was supported by grants provided by the Medical
Science and Technology Development Foundation, Nanjing
>20 471 0.63 (0.52, 0.75) <0.001 Department of Health (Nos. YKK17246, YKK21216,
Title 0.652 YKK22264, YKK20184), the Research Special Fund for
Senior title 581 0.73 (0.63, 0.83) <0.001 Public Welfare Industry of Health (No. 200802150), the
Intermediate title 842 0.79 (0.71, 0.88) <0.001 Suzhou Gusu Health Talents Scientific Research Project
Primary 1053 0.77 (0.70, 0.85) <0.001 (Nos. GSWS2021053, GSWS2019070), Key Diagnosis
technical job title and Treatment Program of Suzhou (LCZX202016), and
Each stratification adjusted for all the factors (sex, age, marital status, the Suzhou clinical Medical Center for Mood Disorders
education, hospital grade, categories of hospitals, department, work (Szlcyxzx202109).
experience, and title) except the stratification factor itself.
Abbreviations: WFC: Work–family conflict; and CI: Confidence interval. Conflict of interest
physicians are male, unmarried, and highly educated All the authors declare that none of them has a conflicts
and work in tertiary hospitals and general hospitals, the of interest.

Volume 1 Issue 1 (2023) 7 https://doi.org/10.36922/jcbp.1013