Arch Argent Pediatr 2012;110(6):466-473 / 466 Professional burnout in pediatric intensive care units in Argentina SUMMARY Introduction. There is currently a deficiency of physicians in pediatric intensive care units (PICU). The cause of this deficit is multifactori- al, although the burnout phenomenon has been described as relevant. Objective. To analyze the situation of human resource in the pediatric intensive care units in Argentina and measure the level of burnout. Methods. An observational cross-sectional study through surveys administered electronically; the Maslach Burnout Inventory was used. Physicians that work at public o private pediatric intensive care units in Argentina during at least 24 hours per week were invited to participate. Results. A total of 162 surveys were completed (response rate 60%). We observed a high risk of burnout in emotional exhaustion in 40 therapists (25%), in fulfillment in 9 (6%), and depersonaliza- tion in 31 (19%). In combination, 66 professionals (41%) had a high risk of burnout to some extent; there were independent protective factors of this risk as to be certified in the specialty (ORA 0.38, 95% CI 0.19 to 0.75) and work in public sector PICU (ORA 0.31, 95% CI 0.15 to 0.65), while working more than 36 hours/week on duty in- creased the risk (ORA 1.94, 95% CI 1.1 to 3.85). Additionally, 31% said that they did not plan to continue working in intensive care, and 86% did not think to continue with on call duties in the following years. Over 60% of respondents reported that changes in professional practice (salary, staff positions, early retirement, fewer loads on call) could prolong the expectation of continuing activities in PICU. Conclusions. A significant percentage of doctors working in the PICU of Argentina have a high risk of burnout syndrome and a low expectation of continuing in the field. Key words: Pediatric intensive care units, burnout, human resources. http://dx.doi.org/10.5546/aap.2012.466 INTRODUCTION Critical care refers to the medi- cal care of patients suffering from se- vere, unstable or acute conditions. 1 In Argentina, pediatric intensive care a. Hospital Nacional de Pediatría “Prof. Dr. Juan P. Garrahan”. Buenos Aires, Argentina. b. Comité Nacional de Emergencias y Cuidados Críticos. Sociedad Argentina de Pediatría. c. Pediatric Information Technology Work Group. Sociedad Argentina de Pediatría. E-mail Address: María E. Galvan, MD: eugegalvan31@gmail.com Funding: “Fundación Garrahan” Research Grant and Ramon Carrillo- Arturo Oñativia Initiation Scholarship granted by the Health Research Committee (Comité Nacional Salud Investiga) of the Ministry of Health; both grants facilitated the inclusion of research scholars during the development process. Conflict of Interest: None. Received: 4-17-2012 Accepted: 6-4-2012 has become a certified pediatric sub- specialty since 1997. 2 The presence of physicians trained in critical care improves the survival of patients and reduces health costs. Addition- ally, human resource deficiencies in these units increase morbidity and mortality. 3 We are currently facing a deficien- cy of physicians trained to work in the PICU. The specialty of pediatric intensive care has been indicated as a priority in the training need by ar- eas of human resources. Internation- ally, the Committee on Manpower for Pulmonary and Critical Care So- cieties (COMPACCS), 4 details that fu- ture demand for critical care services in the United States will soon exceed the capacity of the current delivery system. In 2007, the Sociedad Argen- tina de Terapia Intensiva warned the community on the need to double the number of intensive care special- ists, which meant incorporating 700 professionals to meet the demand. In recent years, however, no vacancies have been covered for the training of these specialists. The causes for which physicians leave the PICU are multiple; the professional burnout 5-8 has been de- scribed as one of the relevant factors for this. The term burnout, according to Freudenberger, 9 is defined as “exhaus- tion of energy experienced by profes- sionals when they feel overwhelmed by the problems of others.” More re- cently, Maslach and Jackson 10,11 de- fined it as “a response to chronic work stress whose components are an emotion- María Eugenia Galván, MD a , Juan C. Vassallo, MD a , Susana P. Rodríguez, MD a , Paula Otero, MD c , María Mercedes Montonati, MD a , Gustavo Cardigni, MD a , Daniel G. Buamscha, MD b , Daniel Rufach, MD b , Silvia Santos, MD b , Rodolfo P. Moreno, MD b , Mariam Sarli, MD b y Members of the Clinical and Epidemiological Research Group in Pediatric Intensive Care Units - Sociedad Argentina de Pediatría Original article