Burnout Characteristics Research Articles

Research on Oxy-Fuel Combustion Characteristics of Two Typical Chinese Coals

Oxy–fuel (O2/CO2) combustion technology shows great potential for carbon reduction. However, difference in the combustion atmosphere would affect coal combustion characteristics and pollutant emissions. In order to explore oxy–fuel combustion characteristics, two typical Chinese coals, sub–bituminous and lean coal, were utilized. Based on thermogravimetry and pilot–scale test, the ignition and burnout characteristics under oxy–fuel and air combustion atmosphere were investigated. Besides, the NOx emission characteristics were also investigated on the pilot–scale test. Through experimental results, these two kinds of coal showed different combustion characteristics, mainly due to differences in coal quality. Compared with air combustion, oxy–fuel combustion affected the coal combustion process. Firstly, the ignition temperature of sub–bituminous and lean coal decreased from 418 and 477 °C to 405 and 415 °C, respectively; the burnout temperature also decreased from 855 and 985 °C to 808 and 838 °C, respectively. Then, coal combustion performance was evaluated by comprehensive combustion characteristics (S); with an increase in S from, respectively, 3.659 and 2.013 to 4.826 and 3.545 × 10−8(min−2 × K−3), the combustion performance significantly improved. Then, the char burnout time was advanced for 1~3 min. Similar results were obtained on the pilot–scale test. The ignition temperatures decreased from 505 and 552 to 490 and 512 °C, respectively. Moreover, the char burnout rate increased by 0.5~5% and 2~11%, respectively. Lastly, the NOx concentration in flue gas was 2.2~2.6 and 2.0~2.3 times higher for the two kinds of coal under oxy–fuel combustion.

Emission characteristics of coal gasification fine slag direct combustion and co-firing with coal

Coal gasification is an effective way to use coal cleanly and efficiently, and coal gasification fine slag is a by-product of coal gasification with high carbon content, large specific surface area, developed pore structure and large output during production. At present, combustion has become an effective way to dispose of coal gasification fine slag on a large scale, and the coal gasification fine slag after combustion treatment can be further used for construction raw materials. In this paper, the emission characteristics of gas-phase pollutants and particulate matter under different combustion temperatures (900 °C, 1100 °C, 1300 °C) and combustion atmosphere (5%, 10%, 21% O2 concentration) are studied with the drop tube furnace experimental system. By co-firing different proportions of coal gasification fine slag (10%, 20%, 30%) and raw coal, the pollutants formation law under co-firing conditions is studied. Scanning electron microscopy-energy spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) is used to characterize the apparent morphology and elemental composition of particulate samples. The measurement results of gas-phase pollutants show that the increase of furnace temperature and O2 concentration can effectively promote combustion and improve burnout characteristics, but the emission of gas-phase pollutants increases. A certain proportion (10%–30%) of coal gasification fine slag is added to the raw coal, which reduces the total emission of gas-phase pollutants (NOx and SOx). Studies on the characteristics of particulate matter formation show that co-firing with coal gasification fine slag in raw coal can effectively reduce submicron particle emission, and the lower fine particle emission is also detected at lower furnace temperature and oxygen concentration. The element analysis of particulate matter formation shows that the Fe, Si and S elements content of submicron particle generated by YL (the coal gasification fine slag generated by water slurry furnace in of Shaanxi Extended China Coal Yulin Energy Chemical Co., Ltd) sample increases significantly with the increase of furnace temperature and O2 concentration, which is the main influencing factor for the increase of submicron particle. With the increase of the mixing ratio of YL sample, the content of major elements such as Fe, K and Mg of submicron particle decreases significantly, which is an important reason why the amount of the submicron particle decreases.

Job stress and burnout among construction professionals: the moderating role of online emotions

PurposeThe negative effects of job stress and burnout on construction professionals (CPs) at the construction site have been widely concern in the construction industry. The purpose of this study is committed to explore the impact of job stress on CPs on the construction site, especially in the context of the widespread use of social media to express their emotions.Design/methodology/approachThis study developed a job-related stress-burnout-health conditions-turnover intention (S-B-HT) framework to explore the direct and lagged effects of job stress, we also examined the moderating effects of online emotions, operationalized in terms of emotional intensity and expression pattern, on the relationship between job stress with job burnout under two evolution paths (i.e. health conditions or turnover intention). This study collected 271 samples through a survey questionnaire for empirical testing, and introduced structural equation models to validate the proposed conceptual model.FindingsThe results show that job stress has a significant positive effect on job burnout, and job burnout maintains a positive relationship with health conditions (or turnover intention) under the interference mechanism. Simultaneously, the online emotions expressed in social media have a positive moderating effect in two stages of the evolution path.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study remind the project manager need to timely find and solve the job burnout characteristics of CPs due to excessive job stress, especially to prevent the accidental consequences caused by job burnout.Originality/valueOn this basis, this study provides an important value of using social media to express emotions for the project team to alleviate the adverse of professionals under job stress.

Physician stress in the era of COVID-19 vaccine disparity: a multi-institutional survey.

Healthcare workers are at a high risk of infection during infectious disease outbreaks, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the availability of several vaccines against COVID-19, the absence of vaccination in patients and colleagues remains a continuous source of stress in healthcare workers. We conducted a survey of physician preceptors, both MDs and DOs, to explore the impact of differences in the patients' and colleagues' vaccination status on their well-being, stress, and burnout. The objective of this study is to determine whether exposure to unvaccinated patients and/or colleagues increases stress and burnout in physician preceptors by utilizing a self-reported survey. This multi-institutional study was carried out in the United States in 2022. An online survey questionnaire was utilized to collect data from physicians working as preceptors for multiple academic institutions. The anonymous Qualtrics® survey utilized a modified version of the questionnaire from the expanded Physician Well-being Index (ePWBI) designed by MedEd Web Solutions (MEWS). Statistical analysis on both descriptive and qualitative data were performed. Utilizing a threshold of p≤0.05, data analysis revealed many statistically significant relationships between the variables. A total of 218 physician preceptors completed the survey. The survey results showed that physicians overwhelmingly (p<0.001) felt that all patients (and healthcare workers) should be vaccinated. The results also indicated that physicians experienced more stress when working with unvaccinated patients (p<0.001), and these stressors were often associated with the physician's gender and age. Furthermore, physicians stated that both their assessment and treatment plans were significantly different for vaccinated vs unvaccinated patients (p=0.039 and p=0.0167, respectively). Most importantly, stress levels (p<0.001) and burnout characteristics (p=0.024) were noted by physicians, both in themselves and in their colleagues. Findings suggest that physician stress and burnout is a common theme due to the differences in vaccination status of patients admitted to COVID-19 clinics. Due to a more rapid progression of COVID-19 in unvaccinated patients, treatment plans for vaccinated vsunvaccinated patients were also considerably different.

Characteristics and influencing factors of early childhood teachers' work stress and burnout: A comparative study between China, Ghana, and Pakistan.

Many studies have documented the stress and burnout experienced by early childhood teachers. However, few have focused on comparisons among countries, particularly developing ones. Meanwhile, female teachers, who are more sensitive and tend to provide emotional responses, are often overlooked as a major force of emotional involvement. This study examined the similarities and differences of early childhood teachers' stress, burnout, and gender in China, Ghana, and Pakistan. This study adopted a cross-sectional design. The participants included 945 preschool and lower primary school teachers recruited from Zhejiang Province in China, the Ashanti Region in Ghana, and Punjab, Pakistan. The analyses were conducted using structural equation modeling. First, the study estimated all parameters separately and without constraints between the groups for all models. Second, the study compared the latent mean difference and of stressors and burnout between teachers' personal and job characteristics. Third, a structural equation model was used to assess the relationship between teachers' stressors and burnout. Across the three countries, female teachers are more stressed out, with higher emotional demands and work-family conflicts, and are more prone to burnout with a greater level of emotional exhaustion and a lower level of personal accomplishments than their male counterparts are. Moreover, Chinese teachers were found to be the most stressed-out group with the highest level of burnout. In comparison to teachers in China and Pakistan, early childhood teachers in Ghana possess the lowest level of emotional demands. With the lowest level of emotional exhaustion and the highest level of personal accomplishments, Pakistani teachers were unlikely to experience burnout. This study comparatively analyzed the characteristics of stress and burnout among ECTs in different cultural settings and educational systems in three developing countries (China, Ghana, and Pakistan), and revealed workplace characteristics and circumstances for ECTs. In addition, this study takes gender as the main influencing factor and explores its effect on ECTs' stress and burnout, and it highlights and verifies "emotionality" in ECTs' profession. As a result, policymakers and stakeholders in different countries may be encouraged to improve ECE quality and the well-being of ECTs.

Психогігієнічна оцінка особливостей емоційного вигорання, астенічного і депресивного станів та агресивності студентів за умов дистанційного (on-line) навчання

The aim of the work was to perform a psychohygienic assessment the characteristics of the spread of emotional burnout’s features, asthenic and depressive states and aggression of students in the conditions of the use of remote (on-line) organization of educational activities. Materials and methods: The research was conducted on the basis of National Pyrohov Memorial Medical University. A complex of highly informative hygienic, medical-sociological and psychodiagnostic methods and the methods of statistical analysis was used. Results: When considering the leading characteristics of emotional burnout, first of all, it was necessary to pay attention to a significant increase in the level of expression of resistance phase indicators (р&lt;0.05-0.01), characteristic of the organization of the educational process according to the auditorium format, against the background of completely stable expression indicators of the specified phase (p&gt;0.05), characteristic of the organization of the educational process according to the remote format. In the course of research aimed at determining the correlates of the asthenic state, it was established that under the conditions of using the remote form of education, either a decrease in the degree of their expression was observed (young women), or the indicators stabilized at the initial level (young men). When determining the characteristics of changes in the leading correlates of depression, it was noticed that under the conditions of using the remote format of the organization of the educational process, either a significant decrease in the degree of their expression was observed (young women), or the indicators stabilized at the initial level (young men) too. During the analysis of indicators of aggressive personality manifestations, it should be noted that under the conditions of remote education, statistically significant changes were observed in the characteristics of physical aggression (p&lt;0.05) and negativism (p&lt;0.05). Conclusions: In the course the research the psychohygienic assessment of the personality traits of students in the conditions of application of a remote form of organization of educational activity was carried out. It is established that in the case of use on-line learning there is a significant increase in the degree of expression of the phase of tension of emotional burnout, the stable course of the processes of formation of asthenic and depressive states, a decrease in the level of physical aggression on the background of a pronounced increase in the degree of negativism in the structure of aggressive manifestations.

Burnout among health-care workers in an emergency setup

Burnout among health-care workers, which is on the rise, has recently drawn attention as a potential risk to patient safety and the standard of care. Together with strain and stress, inadequate hospital resources and safety measures are the main contributors to burnout. A lower sense of self-worth, cynicism, and a loss of enthusiasm for one's career is characteristics of burnout. During work and on the job, the person is exposed to various stressful conditions. According to the Collins English Dictionary, “to become or cause to grow fatigued by overwork or dissipation” is the definition of burnout. There are many worries regarding burnout and physician suicide. While social cohesiveness, belonging, and a sense of future stability are all felt by workers at work, long hours, pressure, and stress make their suffering worse. An avoidant decision-making style and difficulty recognizing and explaining feelings are both significant indicators of numerous features of burnout (a challenge similar to alexithymia but not as severe). Individual-focused interventions, such as educational interventions and mindfulness-based therapy, may be able to reduce occupational stress and/or burnout for staff members working in emergency departments (ED). Burnout should be prevented if stress is the main factor; hence efforts should be taken to alleviate stress. Spreading knowledge to ED medical staff with professional education and training. Hospitals can guarantee social support for staff members and enhance ED resources to lessen workload stress.

Toward a Possible Reassessment of Causes and Protecting Strategies Underlying the Dynamic of Parental Burnout in Costa Rica

Objective. This study aims to reach an initial understanding of some specific cultural characteristics of parental burnout in Costa Rica. The findings stem from analyzing specific family configurations of parental burnout during parenting. Method. An intentional sample of 146 mothers and 102 fathers (n= 248, mean age 37) was selected. They completed a questionnaire regarding socio-demographics, Parental burnout assessment, Gender roles, Independent-interdependent Self, Involvement in parental function and duties, and the Parental goals and values. Results. there is a low prevalence of parental burnout and an average level of individualism in parenting. Although the study failed to identify high degrees of parental burnout in the Costa Rican sampled parents, which tend to be rather moderate or low in comparison with other countries, there seems to be an initial tendency of some type of family toward increasing burnout as well as noteworthy traits of familial dynamics that might function as mitigating or even protective factors against parental burnout.

Prevalence and Characteristics of Burnout among Pharmacists in Primary Care Centers in the Kingdom of Bahrain- A Cross-Sectional Study

INTRODUCTION: Burnout syndrome is defined as the state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion that results from exposure to stressors. It is prevalent among healthcare workers including pharmacists and is associated with significant detrimental effects on the patients, healthcare workers, and healthcare systems. Nonetheless, few studies have assessed the prevalence and characteristics of burnout among pharmacists. This study aimed to assess the prevalence and characteristics of burnout among pharmacists in governmental primary health care centers in Bahrain.&#x0D; &#x0D; METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the period between January 2022 and February 2022 and involved all the pharmacists in the primary health care centers in the kingdom of Bahrain. Burnout syndrome was assessed using the Maslach Burnout Inventory, a validated tool designed to assess the emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment aspects of burnout.&#x0D; &#x0D; RESULTS: A total of 148 pharmacists completed the online questionnaire and were included in the analysis (response rate = 80.4%). The majority of participants were females (n = 130, 87.8%), married (n = 117, 79.1%), and aged between 25 and 35 years (n = 99, 66.9%). Almost 60% (n = 86, 58%) of the pharmacists had high levels of emotional exhaustion, 62 (41.9%) participants reported high levels of depersonalization, and 60.1% (n = 89) of them reported low accomplishment levels. No statistical differences were found between the baseline characteristics of the pharmacists and the aspects of burnout.&#x0D; &#x0D; CONCLUSION: In conclusion, this study revealed an alarmingly high prevalence of burnout syndrome among pharmacists in primary care centers in Bahrain. Evidence-based preventive strategies and interventions to reduce burnout levels among pharmacists are urgently needed.

Simulation of char burnout characteristics of biomass/coal blend with a simplified single particle reaction model

A single particle reaction model has been developed to study the char burnout characteristics of co-firing of coal and biomass under air and oxy-fuel combustion conditions. Two types of coal/biomass blend, i.e., Brisbane bituminous coal blended with woodchip, and Loy Yang lignite coal blended with woodchip, have been studied. The model is validated with different sets of experiments and CFD simulation from the literature. The effects of biomass fraction, particle size, oxygen level and gas temperature have been investigated. It is found that increasing biomass blending ratio, oxygen concentration, [O2], or the gas temperature, tg, increases char reactivity and conversion rate and reduces char burnout time. The current numerical study demonstrates that comparing to traditional CFD simulation, the proposed single particle reaction model takes much less simulation time and efforts, while able to provide a deep insight into char burnout characteristics in co-combustion process.

Predictors of burnout, compassion fatigue, and compassion satisfaction experienced by community health workers offering maternal and infant services in New York State.

Although burnout has been increasingly well studied among medical (nurses, physicians, residents) and mental health providers (psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers), there continues to be a lack of attention on the well-being of community-based providers, such as Community Health Workers (CHWs), within the United States. Using cross-sectional data from 75 CHWs employed in 14 agencies funded through the Maternal and Infant Community Health Collaboratives Initiative (MICHC) in New York, our study examined predictors (anxiety, physical health, adverse childhood experiences, job satisfaction, role certainty, demographic and work characteristics) of burnout, compassion fatigue (CF) and compassion satisfaction (CS). Descriptive statistics were used to characterize our sample and linear regression was employed to investigate the correlates of burnout, CF and CS. Results indicated that CHWs with higher levels of anxiety and lower job satisfaction were more likely to have higher burnout scores. CHWs with higher levels of anxiety, lower job satisfaction and fewer days of poorer health were more likely to report higher CF. Those who worked more than 35 h per week were less likely to report higher CS. The study provides recommendations for organizational-level interventions to address risk factors of burnout and CF and promote CS among CHWs, such as bolstering supervision, encouraging greater communication, offering recognition/appreciation of CHWs and creating opportunities for self-care. Findings should be considered when designing organizational-level preventive measures that mitigate burnout and CF and promote CS.

Characteristics of Occupational Burnout among Nurses of Various Specialties and in the Time of the COVID-19 Pandemic-Review.

Occupational burnout is particularly common among nurses due to their work being associated with stress, showing understanding, compassion, and commitment, along with the simultaneous need to maintain the necessary emotional distance. The aim of this review was to assess the occurrence and characterization of burnout among nurses working within neurology, geriatric care, intensive care units and with patients infected with the novel COVID-19 virus. PRISMA guidelines were used to conduct the review. The search for literature was limited to articles meeting the inclusion criteria and published from 2017 to 2022 in PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct, Google Scholar, and Wiley. A total of 768 articles from this category have been found. Ultimately, after in-depth analysis, 20 articles were included in the study. The group of respondents ranged from 49 to 3100 participants. According to the data, the percentages of nurses suffering from burnout in the presented research ranged from 14.3% to 84.7%, with the highest value of burnout among nurses who worked in the ICU during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are certain factors among nurses that significantly affect the occurrence of burnout. These include, among others, working time, age, exposure to infection and contact with infected patients, lack of training on COVID-19 prevention, providing care to an increased number of COVID-19 patients per shift, lack of personal protective equipment, lack of support of administration, lack of pay satisfaction, intrinsic motivation and turnover intention.

Core belief challenge moderated the relationship between posttraumatic growth and adolescent academic burnout in Wenchuan area during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This study investigates the characteristics of posttraumatic growth (PTG) and academic burnout among adolescents in an ethnic minority area in China during the COVID-19 pandemic, and examines the moderating role of core belief challenge on the association between PTG and academic burnout. This study surveyed 941 secondary school students in Wenchuan using the posttraumatic growth inventory, adolescent academic burnout inventory, core beliefs inventory, and a self-designed demographic questionnaire. The results showed that: (1) Five months after the COVID-19 outbreak in China, the level of PTG among adolescents in the Wenchuan area was high and its prevalence was 32.3%. Among them, the dimension of perceived changes in self was the highest, and the PTG level of junior high school students was higher than that of high school students. The academic burnout level of adolescents, particularly emotional exhaustion, was also high. The academic burnout level of the high school students was higher than that of junior high school students. (2) There was a significant negative correlation between PTG and academic burnout among adolescents. (3) Core belief challenge moderated the relationship between PTG and academic burnout. PTG had a significant negative predictive effect on adolescents’ academic burnout only when the core belief challenge was above a moderate level. These results showed the uniqueness of PTG and psychological behavioral problems of adolescents in ethnic minority areas during the COVID-19 pandemic. They also emphasized the key role of core belief challenge in the process of PTG in reducing adolescents’ academic burnout. Based on these results, recommendations are provided to alleviate academic burnout among adolescents in Wenchuan against the background of the COVID-19 pandemic. While providing full play to ethnic minority cultural characteristics to promote posttraumatic growth, guiding adolescents’ value reflection and cognitive reconstruction should be focused on.

NO emission and burnout characteristics in co-combustion of coal and sewage sludge following high-temperature preheating

Due to the high content of volatile nitrogen in sewage sludge, co-combustion of coal and sewage sludge easily leads to high emission of nitric oxides (NOx). To solve this problem, we applied the high-temperature preheating technology to promote the advance conversion of fuel-nitrogen into N2 so as to reduce NOx emission. In this study, a two-stage drop-tube furnace system was employed. The effects of sludge proportion, excess air ratio in the preheating zone (λ1), preheating temperature, and combustion temperature on NO emission and burnout were investigated. Our results showed that with the preheating treatment, increasing the sludge proportion reduced NOx emission and promoted char burnout. NO emission was the lowest when λ1 increased to 0.5. Under this condition, 62% of the fuel nitrogen could be converted to the gaseous species, in which the portion of N2 was 89.7%. By controlling λ1 to 0.5 and sludge proportion to 15%, the maximum NO reduction of 62% was achieved. The emitted NO and unburnt carbon in fly ash were reduced by 48.3% and 43.2%, respectively, when the preheating temperature increased to 1200 °C. The effect of combustion temperature strongly depended on the stoichiometry ratio. In oxygen-deficient regions, NO emission decreased with the increase of temperature, while an opposite trend appeared in oxygen-rich regions. The critical excess air ratio in our experiments was around 0.8.

COVID-19 pandemic burnout in an Italian sample of anaesthesiologists: coping strategies, resilience and the capability of tolerating the uncertainty as preventing factors

ABSTRACT The present study aims to explore the prevalence of burnout characteristics and their association with resilience, coping strategies, and the intolerance of uncertainty dimensions. It also aims to explore the predictive effect of these variables on burnout dimensions, separately. Through the SurveyMonkey platform, 1,009 anaesthesiologists completed the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), Resilience Scale, Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale Short Form (IU), and the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS). According to the MBI cut-off, 39.7% and 25.8% of participants scored high in Emotional Exhaustion and Depersonalization, respectively, and 44.2% scored low in Personal Accomplishment. Several significant correlations between burnout dimensions and resilience, coping strategies, and the intolerance of uncertainty emerged. Regarding the linear regression models tested, coping strategies, resilience, and age showed a significant predictive effect on all three of the burnout dimensions. In conclusion, the results showed that individual levels of resilience and one’s ability to tolerate uncertainty and task-oriented coping strategies represent significant factors for lower burnout levels in Italian anaesthesiologists during COVID-19 pandemic. These findings highlight the importance of intervention aimed at promoting useful coping strategies and enhancing resilience among healthcare workers.

Study on Thermodynamic Characteristics and Heat Transfer Method of Uncontrolled Fire in Coal Mine Gangue Mountain Spontaneous Combustion Based on System Dynamics.

Coal fire disaster caused by the spontaneous combustion of coal has always been one of the serious problems that threaten the safety of coal mining. In our study, we first solved the dynamic parameters and mechanical functions of coal gangue using the Achar differential method and Coats-Redfern integral method. Then, based on the flow and heat transfer mechanism of hot rod vapor-liquid two-phase flow, combined with coal spontaneous ignition conditions, influencing factors, coal pile spontaneous combustion temperature field structure distribution, etc., the heat transfer process of the hot rod in the coal pile (coal gangue mountain) was analyzed. Results show the average activation energies of the second stage of different types of coal mine gangue. Upon comparing the characteristic parameters of coal gangue in different regions and ages, it is found that 8# coal gangue has better combustion and burn-out characteristics, and its comprehensive combustion characteristics are second only to those of the coal gangue in Datong and higher than those in Panzhihua, Pingdingshan, and Hancheng. The higher the content of volatile matter and fixed carbon in coal gangue, the lower the ash content, and the better the comprehensive combustion performance of the coal gangue. Under the condition of sufficient oxygen supply combustion, the larger the fuel ratio, the better the burnout performance of the coal gangue. The test of the influence of the hot rod on the temperature field distribution inside the coal pile shows that the maximum cooling rate of a single hot rod to the coal pile during the test period is 33.4°C, and the maximum cooling rate reaches 39.6%. The calculated heat dissipation of the 80 h hot rod is 1.0865, 2.1680, and 3.3649 MJ, respectively.

Burnout Among Respiratory Therapists in a tertiary hospital in Saudi Arabia.

Background: Respiratory therapists (RTs) provide various types of patient care in different clinical settings. Burnout can have an undesirable effect on RTs and their patients. Managing the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically in hospitals, could induce stress in RTs and increase the likelihood of burnout. Therefore, this study aimed to measure the level of burnout among RTs during the COVID-19 pandemic.Method: A validated cross-sectional questionnaire was used to identify the prevalence and characteristics of burnout among RTs. The questionnaire was administered by the respiratory care department of a tertiary healthcare center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The data analysis included descriptive, inferential, and correlational tests.Results: The survey was distributed among 100 RTs with a response rate of 66%. Most respondents reported high burnout levels in the three domains of burnout: 77% reported emotional exhaustion, 98% reported depersonalization, and 73% reported low personal achievement. Univariate analysis revealed that emotional exhaustion was significantly higher among RTs who were male, married, or working in critical care settings. Female RTs and those working in general care settings reported feelings of reduced personal achievement. Furthermore, the analysis revealed a moderate positive correlation between the years of experience and emotional exhaustion (r=0.6, p<0.001).Conclusions: A high prevalence of burnout was observed among RTs in one Saudi tertiary hospital. Burnout is associated with several factors, and interventions should target all domains of burnout. RT management and staff are responsible for addressing their needs and collaboratively working together to overcome burnout. Further investigations focusing on techniques and strategies to alleviate burnout are required.

Combustion dynamics of droplets of aqueous slurries based on coal slime and waste oil

This paper shows the analysis of burnout characteristics of droplets of the following slurry fuels: (i) based on coal slime with or without the addition of waste turbine oil; (ii) based on coal dust with or without the addition of waste turbine oil. The oil share in the mixtures varied from 0% to 15%. The solid component share varied in the range of 40–60%. Single droplets with an initial size of 1–5 mm were burned in a tubular muffle furnace at temperatures of 700–900 °C. The inertia of gas-phase and heterogeneous ignition and the combustion time of mixtures were estimated. Based on experimental data, the values of the linear and mass burnout rates of fuel droplets were calculated. At a furnace temperature of less than 800 °C, the characteristics of ignition and burnout of droplets of water-containing fuel mixtures and solid particles deteriorated significantly. The most preferred is the combustion of coal slime in the composition of aqueous slurry with the addition of high-reactive components (for example, waste oil of petroleum origin or vegetable oils). To intensify ignition and combustion, it is recommended to use no more than 50% of the solid component in the mixture. The maximum linear burnout rate was typical for droplets about 3 mm in size and reached values of 0.5–0.6 mm2/s. The mass burnout rates of droplets of the investigated fuels with a size of 5 mm varied in the range of 0.0005–0.0018 g/s.

The Burden of Leadership: a Survey of Burnout Experiences Among Psychiatry Program Directors.

The objectives of this study were to examine the prevalence of burnout, specify contributors to and protective factors against burnout, and gather suggestions to improve well-being in psychiatry Program Directors. A survey regarding burnout and wellness was distributed to psychiatric Program Directors through the email listserv of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training (AADPRT). The survey response rate was 273 responses out of 880 members surveyed (31%). The majority of respondents were current residency or fellowship Program Directors or Associate Program Directors or had another current educational role (93%, 227/245). Almost half of current Program Directors or Associate Program Directors reported feeling burned out almost daily or once a week (44%, 93/210). These Program Directors reported a desire to resign (77%), experienced discrimination within the past 5 years (66%), and struggled with finding meaning in their job (44%). The most frequently endorsed contributors to burnout were increasing administrative burden and insufficient support. The survey findings confirm that burnout characteristics are common among respondents, associated with a desire to resign and a struggle to find meaning in the highly demanding position of Program Director or Associate Program Director. Advocacy for resources, decreased administrative overload, and increased protected time would enhance well-being in Program Directors. Most striking was the frequency of discrimination reported and its relationship to burnout. Departments may benefit from a careful review of policies, procedures, and training to decrease hostile workplaces for women, international medical graduate, and under-represented in medicine Program Directors.

Rheology, ignition, and combustion performance of coal-water slurries: Influence of sequence and methods of mixing

This paper presents the results obtained from a comprehensive study of how the conditions and methods of preparing three-component fuel slurries affect their ignition, combustion, emissions, as well as viscosity and static stability. The data obtained for slurry fuels based on bituminous coal and water with added waste hydrocarbon oil and wood biomass as well as a slurry based on coal slime. A tubular muffle furnace was used for combustion at 700–900 °C. The influence of the mixing conditions of the components on the ignition and combustion behavior was moderate. It was established that surfactants should not be added to composite slurry fuels at the final stage of component mixing. To provide more uniform burnout of a blend with wood biomass, the latter should first be mixed with water and then the coal component should be added. Iterative mixing can provide a 10–15% improvement of ignition and burnout characteristics. To obtain a more homogeneous and stable blend, it is advisable to use a cavitator (colloid mill) rather than a homogenizer or a magnetic stirrer. Based on a set of parameters (viscosity, stability, cost, ignition and combustion characteristics), a dimensionless efficiency indicator was calculated using Weighted Sum Method. The calculated values of the relative efficiency indicator of the fuel blends based on coal dust ranged from 0.67 to 0.73. The relative efficiency of a slurry was found to increase by 25–30% when coal dust is replaced by coal slime due to the economic parameter.