Empathy and Burnout of Healthcare Professionals in Public Hospitals of Greece.

Background: Empathy plays a crucial role in the interaction between healthcare professionals and patients. The use of empathy and empathetic skills regarding to healthcare professionals' burnout is expected to have a positive impact on the overall patient experience. Objective: To investigate the level of empathy and burnout of healthcare professionals in Public Hospitals and their determinants. Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted in May of 2018. The study sample consisted of 173 healthcare professionals of various specialties and the response rate was 75.2%. Data were collected using the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy-Health care professionals (JSE-HP) and the Meshach's Burnout Inventory (MBI) that were voluntarily completed by study participants. Results: Empathy score was relatively high (mean value=102, SD±16.2) while burnout score was quite moderate (mean value=38.1, SD±18.8). The three dimensions of burnout, emotional exhaustion (mean value=21.3, SD±11.8), depersonalization (mean value=7.2, SD±6.1) and personal accomplishment (mean value=38.1, SD±7.6) were also found at moderate levels. Among demographic factors, female participants and those who worked at Pediatric, Cardiological, Pathological, Psychiatric, Artificial Kidney Unit, Regular Outpatient Clinics and Emergency Department had higher empathy scores. More years of total service were related to lower overall burnout scores and higher depersonalization scores. Those who worked at Pediatric, Cardiological, Pathological, Psychiatric, Artificial Kidney Unit, Regular Outpatient Clinics and Emergency Department, had higher emotional exhaustion scores and male participants had higher depersonalization scores than female. In addition, higher empathy score was correlated with lower burnout, lower depersonalization and higher personal accomplishment scores. Conclusion: The findings suggest that empathy is negatively associated with burnout. Enhancing healthcare professionals' ability for empathy through systematic training programs may have significant effects against the burnout syndrome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]