Burnout syndrome and depression levels and related factors in Turkish radiation oncology residents

OBJECTIVES The aim is to determine the burnout syndrome (BS) and depression levels and related factors in Turkish Radiation Oncology (TRO) residents and make suggestions to overcome. METHODS The inventories were sent by e-mail to 78 physicians who were still TRO residents during August-September 2011 in Turkey. Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Maslach Burnout Inventory, and questionnaire of sociodemographic data (SDQ) were used. SPSS 15.0 program was used for the statistics. RESULTS The response rate was 58%. Various levels of mood disorder was detected in 31% of the residents and 11% had clinical depression levels. In terms of BS, the percentage of high levels of emotional exhaustion was 49%, depersonalization (DP) 27%, and sense of low personal accomplishment 69%. CONCLUSION BS was found to be an important problem among TRO residents. Regulations should be made in individual, institutional, and national health policies to ensure a better quality of education and working environment.