Abstract
BackgroundThe use of technology for work has become an unavoidable component of most occupations. It is considered a double-edged sword; it has a massive impact on employees’ mental health and productivity, mainly when used outside the working hours. This practice is referred to as technology-assisted supplemental work (TASW). This study aimed to determine the effect of supplemental work using technology behavior on burnout levels among Saudi board residents and its consequences on work productivity.ResultsThree hundred seventy-seven residents were involved in this study to assess their TASW behavior, burnout level, and presenteeism. The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) scale is used to assess burnout, which is composed of three subscales: emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalization (DP), and personal accomplishment (PA). This study revealed that a high risk of EE was found among 52.5% of residents, 12.2% were at high risk of DP, and 53.1% had low PA. The mean score of TASW was 19.7 (SD 3.75) out of 30 points, while the mean score of presenteeism (SPS-6) was 18.5 (SD 4.49) out of 30 points. A significant correlation was found between SPS-6 and MBI subscales including emotional exhaustion (r=−0.642, p<0.001), depersonalization (r=−0.406, p<0.001), and personal accomplishment (r=0.206, p<0.001), but association with TASW did not reach statistical significance (p>0.05).ConclusionBurnout “specifically Emotional Exhaustion” was noted to be significantly high among residents in different specialties in Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, several factors in the study were evidently demonstrated to be highly related to burnout which is directly associated with lost work productivity. However, our study suggests that extra working hours at home using technology were not associated with burnout or an increase in productivity.
Highlights
The use of technology for work has become an unavoidable component of most occupations
The survey includes five sections: general sociodemographic data; working conditions; Stanford Presenteeism Scale (SPS-6) measured on a 5-item Likert scale to assess the lost work productivity in which higher scores indicate higher presenteeism; technology-assisted supplemental work scale (TASW) measured on a 5-item Likert scale to assess the attitude of using technology to do jobrelated work outside the working hours in which higher scores indicate more supplemental work using technology; and lastly, Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) scale measured on a 7-item Likert scale to assess the burnout status which is composed of three subscales: emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalization (DP), and personal accomplishment (PA)
EE was high among 52.5% of residents, while only 12.2% had a higher risk in DP and 53.1% had low PA
Summary
The use of technology for work has become an unavoidable component of most occupations It is considered a double-edged sword; it has a massive impact on employees’ mental health and productivity, mainly when used outside the working hours. This practice is referred to as technology-assisted supplemental work (TASW). The use of smartphones and other communication devices after working hours to catch up has been related to more dangerous conditions such as high levels of stress and possible burnout, leading to a change in the employee’s quality of care [6, 7]. The highest level of burnout was seen in resident physicians compared to medical students and practicing physicians due to different stressors such as time demands, lack of control over time management, work planning, work environments, difficult job situations, and interpersonal relationships [14, 15]
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