Reduction in burnout may be a benefit for short-term medical mission volunteers

This study explored changes in burnout scores following volunteer international non-disaster medical mission service. Maslach, Jackson, and Leiter (1996) conceptualised burnout as involving emotional exhaustion, a sense of depersonalisation, and a lack of personal accomplishments in the workplace. Thirty-six short-term mission workers (mostly physicians and nurses) provided medical care in South America on one of four service brigades. The group scored in the moderate range on all three scales of burnout prior to embarking on the mission trips. Stressful aspects of medical practice (such as lack of control over personal time and pressure to see more patients in less time) were rated and correlated with the burnout scales. The burnout scores improved following short-term mission service and continued to improve at a six-month follow-up. Perhaps a reduction in burnout is one of the benefits of short-term mission work, and further study of this benefit is recommended.