Abstract
BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic compounded political and financial pressures on the nursing workforce in Lebanon. The government resigned in October 2019 in response to the popular uprising that called for an end to corruption and economic mismanagement 5 months before the first COVID-19 case appeared in the country. The continuing crises and the added stress of COVID-19 has increased the risk of occupational burnout and turnover in the nursing workforce. Therefore, valid and reliable measurement is imperative to determine burnout levels, prioritize intervention, and inform evidence-based workforce policy and practice. The primary aim of the study was to delineate burnout levels and cut-points in a national sample of nurses to inform workforce policies and prioritize interventions.MethodsMultidimensional and unidimensional Rasch analyses of burnout data collected from a national convenience sample of 457 hospital nurses 9–12 months after Lebanon’s political and economic collapse began. The data were collected in July–October 2020.ResultsMultidimensional Rasch analysis confirmed that the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory has three highly correlated unidimensional scales that measure personal burnout, work-related burnout, and client-related burnout. Except for a ceiling effect of ~ 2%, the three scales have excellent measurement properties. For each scale, Rasch rating scale analysis confirmed five statistically different nurse burnout levels. The mean personal burnout scores and work-related burnout scores (50.24, 51.11 respectively) were not higher than those reported in the international literature. However, the mean client-related burnout score of 50.3 was higher than reported for other countries. Compared with a baseline study conducted at the beginning of Lebanon’s political and economic crises, only client-related burnout scores were higher p. <.01.ConclusionsThe CBI scales are reliable and valid measures for monitoring nurse burnout in crises torn countries. Stakeholders can use the CBI scales to monitor nurse burnout and prioritize burnout interventions. Urgent action is needed to reduce levels of client-related burnout in Lebanon’s nursing workforce.
Highlights
Lebanon is undergoing multiple crises and is bordering on becoming a failed state
The measurement characteristics of the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) scales are presented before describing the levels of burnout identified in the data
The items were retained because the overfit of both items was modest inlier-pattern mean square (MNSQ) = 1.35, outlier sensitive MNSQ = 1.33
Summary
Lebanon is undergoing multiple crises and is bordering on becoming a failed state. In the eighteen months since the popular uprising that begin in October 2019, the economy has deteriorated, and the political elite has ceased functioning. Gross Domestic Product fell by 20.3% in 2020, and the year-on-year inflation rate reached 137% [1]. Small depositors and medium size enterprises suffered most, and the headcount poverty rate rose to 58%, with 23% of the population living in extreme poverty [2]. The COVID-19 pandemic compounded political and financial pressures on the nursing workforce in Lebanon. The continuing crises and the added stress of COVID-19 has increased the risk of occupational burnout and turnover in the nursing workforce. Valid and reliable measurement is imperative to determine burnout levels, prioritize intervention, and inform evidence-based workforce policy and practice. The primary aim of the study was to delineate burnout levels and cut-points in a national sample of nurses to inform workforce policies and prioritize interventions
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call