Burnout syndrome among employees in a clinical center in Montenegro during COVID-19 - Study findings

Aug 26, 2026

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Burnout syndrome among full-time employees in the Clinical Center of Montenegro was examined during the COVID-19 period, focusing on how workplace stressors and chronic imbalance between demands and available resources contribute to the syndrome. A cross-sectional study in 2020–2021 used socio-demographic data, the Maslach Burnout Inventory, and a COVID-19 stress scale. Burnout prevalence reached 16.8% for staff working with COVID-19 patients, with occupation, confirmed infection, and higher COVID-19 stress scale scores identified as key predictors.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages7

Reading Time18 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Objective

Subjects and Methods

Results

Conclusions

Introduction

Background on COVID-19 and burnout

Subjects and Methods

Study design and eligibility

Burnout syndrome among employees in a clinical center in Montenegro during COVID-19 D. BACKOVIĆ1,2, D. JOVANOVIĆ1,2, Z. BUKMIRIĆ3, M. PAUT KUSTURICA4, M. ASOTIC5 1Clinical Center of Montenegro, Podgorica, Montenegro 2Faculty of Medicine, University of Montenegro, Podgorica, Montenegro 3 Institute of Medical Statistics and Informatics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia 4Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine Novi Sad, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia 5Faculty of Pharmacy and Health, University of Travnik, Travnik, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Abstract. – OBJECTIVE: Burnout syndrome occurs as a result of the influence of stressorsin the workplace. The chronic disproportion between the demands placed on the worker and theresources available to fulfill the demands makes a significant contribution to the development of this syndrome. The occurrence of burnout syndrome has been shown to occur in a wide range of jobs, and it is taking on epidemic proportions among healthcare workers. So far, there have been no large-scale studies dealing with burnout syndrome in healthcare workers in Montenegro. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The research was conducted as a cross-sectional study. All full-time employees of the Clinical Center of Montenegro who participated in the treatment of patients with COVID-19 during 2020 and 2021 were included in the research. Questionnaires used in the research were: a general questionnaire for collecting socio-demographic data, a questionnaire for the assessment of burnout syndrome at work - Maslach Burnout Inventory and a COVID-19 stress scale. RESULTS: The prevalence of burnout syndrome was 16.8% among employees who were engaged around COVID-19 patients. Predictors of burnout syndrome identified were occupation (nurses/technicians have a 2.8 times higher chance of burnout syndrome than doctors as a reference category), confirmed COVID-19 infection (subjects with confirmed COVID-19 infection have more than 2 times higher chance for burnout syndrome), higher CSS scores (subjects with high CSS score have a 3% higher chance of developing burnout syndrome) . CONCLUSIONS: In order to reduce losses due to reduced productivity of employees and prevent long-term detrimental consequences on the mental health of employees, evidence-based preventive measures are needed. Key Words: Burnout syndrome, COVID-19, Healthcare workers, Montenegro. Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic started in China in December 2019 and has quickly spread to the entire world. This pandemic has been especially challenging for many healthcare workers (HCWs) as they have dealt with an increasing number of patients in need of treatments and insecurities regarding the novelty of the virus, but in many countries, they also faced the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) use and even higher workload and decrease in staffing as a consequence of many of them being infected with the virus1. Additionally, healthcare professionals faced longer shifts, disruption of sleep patterns, disruption of an overall work-life balance, and fear of exposing family members to the severe acute respiratory distress coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2)2 . Due to the novelty of the virus and the lack of valid information, there have been challenges in communication between the scientific community and healthcare professionals working in the healthcare system and there has commonly been a lack of updated information both on the virus and on the disease2 . The challenges the healthcare professionals faced could have led to the higher likelihood of the development of different mental health issues, mainly burnout syndrome1,3-5 . Burnout syndrome is a significant problem in modern workplace environments and its prev- 10126 Corresponding Author: Milica Paut Kusturica, MD; [e-mail: milica.paut-kusturica@mf.uns.ac.rs](e-mail: milica.paut-kusturica@mf.uns.ac.rs) alence has increased substantia

FAQs

What was the objective of the study on burnout in Montenegro?

To assess the prevalence of burnout syndrome among healthcare workers in a clinical center in Montenegro during the COVID-19 pandemic and identify factors associated with it.

How was burnout syndrome measured in the study?

Burnout was assessed using the Maslach Burnout Inventory, alongside a general socio-demographic questionnaire and a COVID-19 stress scale.

Which factors predicted burnout syndrome among employees involved with COVID-19 patients?

Occupation, confirmed COVID-19 infection, and higher CSS (COVID-19 stress scale) scores were identified as predictors, including higher odds for nurses/technicians compared with doctors.

Aug 26, 2026

Upload by Sarah