Abstracts Psychology

Burnout, work engagement, and well-being in the healthcareprofessions: A proposal for a digital intervention

by Eric T Reinhart

Burnout is a chronic problem for individuals in the helping professions and is particularly pronounced in healthcare settings. Burnout is an extreme stress response characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization of patients, and a decreased sense of personal accomplishment. Factors unique to healthcare settings include high patient to staff ratios, evaluations of effectiveness based on patient outcomes, and the competing demands of policy makers, patients, and clinicians. Work engagement is a product of the positive psychology movement and developed out of the study of burnout. Work engagement is an affective-emotional state of work-related well-being and is characterized as being positive and fulfilling as the individual experiences vigor, dedication, and absorption with their job. Traditional interventions for burnout have focused on individual stress management techniques presented didactically through a workshop experience. The time demands in healthcare settings are not conducive to long workshops or frequent staff in-service trainings. The two aims of this dissertation are to 1) provide literature review on the relevant aspects of burnout and work engagement and 2) present a program description for a digital intervention to reduce burnout and increase work engagement. Advisors/Committee Members: Williams, Julie (Committee Chair).