Burnout Levels among Professional Counselors in Butabika and Mulago National Referral Hospitals in Uganda
Keywords:
Burnout, Professional Counselors, Butabika, Mulago, UgandaAbstract
Counseling profession places unique demands on care-providers and has negative consequences. This study explored prevalence of burnout and its preventive measures among professional counselors in Butabika and Mulago national referral hospitals in Uganda using the Professional Quality of Life-IV (proQOL-IV) questionnaire to determine levels of burnout. A total of ten research questions were used to determine common strategies employed by counselors in mitigating burnout. A cross sectional descriptive study was adopted and simple random sampling was used to select a sample of 123 respondents. The results showed that70% and 68% of counselors had developed burnout in Butabika and Mulago respectively. It was found out that the most effective strategies for mitigating burnout include; attending workshops, social support, travelling, going on vacations, hobbies, social skills, relaxation, spirituality and supervision. The study recommended that a combination of organizational and individual strategies is necessary to prevent burnout.
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[34] S. Oddie, and L. Ousley. Assessing burn-out and occupational stressors in a medium secure service [Electronic version]. The British Journal of Forensic Practice, 2007, 9 (2),32-48.
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[36] C. Maslach S. Jackson and M. Leiter Maslach Burnout Inventory Manual [1996]. 3rd ed. Palo Alto (CA): Consulting Psychologist Press
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[2] H. J. Freudenberger, Staff burn-out. Journal of Social Issues, 1974, 30, 159–165.
[3] M. A. Malik, I. A. Khan, S. A. Bhutto and A. M. Ghouri. Managerial skills and organizational learning in SMEs of Pakistan. Indian Journal of Commerce & Management Studies, 2011, 2(4), 61-69.
[4] M. P. Leiter and C. Maslach. Areas of worklife: A structured approach to organizational predictors of job burnout. In P. L. Perrewe & D. C. Ganster (Eds.), Research in occupational stress and well-being, 2004, Vol. 3, 91-134 Oxford: Elsevie
[5] L. O. Gavrilovici. Romanian teachers’ burnout and psychological and professional difficulties, 2007, Retrieved 20 July, 2014 fromhttp://holon.ladipu.com/resources/15//Romanian%20teachers'%20burnout%20and%20.pd
[6] C. Maslach W. B. Schaufeli and M. P. Leiter. Job burnout. In S. T. Fiske, D. L. Schacter, & C. Zahn-Waxler (Eds.), Annual Review of Psychology, 2001, 52, 397–422
[7] C. Stalker and C. Harvey. Professional burnout: A review of theory, research, and
prevention Partnerships for Children and Families Project,2002, Wilfrid Laurier University
[8] W. B. Schaufeli and M. P. Leiter. Burnout: 35 years of research and practice. Career Development International, 2008, Vol. 14 No. 3, 2009 pp. 204-220
[9] L. E. Valente, A. Truzzi, W. F. Souza, G. S. Alves, C. E. Alves, F. K. Sudo, et al. Health self-perception by dementia family caregivers: Sociodemographic and clinical factors. Arquivos de Neuropsiquiatria, 2011, 69, 739–744.
[10] A. B. Bakker, E. Demerouti, and A. I. Sanz-Vergel. Burnout and work engagement: The JD–R approach. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 2014, 1, 389–411.
[11] U. Peterson, E. Demerouti, G. Bergström, M. Samuelsson, M. Åsberg Å. Nygren. Burnout and physical and mental health among Swedish healthcare workers, J Adv Nurs, 2008, 62:84–95
[12] N. Embriaco L., Papazian, N., Kentish-Barnes F., Pochard, and E. Azoulay. Burnout syndrome among critical care healthcare workers. Current Opinion in Critical Care, 2007, 13, 482–488.
[13] L. J. Ducharme, H. K. Knudsen and P. M. Roman. Emotional exhaustion and turnover intention in human service occupations: The protective role of coworker support. Sociological Spectrum, 2008, 28, 81?104.
[14] A. Väänänen, A. Koskinen, M. Joensuu, M. Kivimäki, J. Vahtera, A. Kouvonen, et al. Lack of predictability at work and risk of acute myocardial infarction: An 18-year prospective study of industrial employees. American Journal of Public Health, 2008, 98 , 2264–2271.
[15] M. G. Alves, D. Chor, E. Faerstein, G. L. Werneck, and C. S. Lopes. Job strain and hypertension in women: Estudo Pro-Saúde (Pro-Health Study). Revista de SaúdePública, 2009. 43, 893–896.
[16] J. E. Becan, D. K. Knight, and P. M. Flynn. Innovation adoption as facilitated by a change-oriented workplace. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 2012, 42(2), 179-190. PMCID: PMC3268854
[17] L. T., Eby and T. C. Rothrauff-Laschober. The relationship between perceptions of organizational functioning and voluntary counselor turnover: A four-wave longitudinal study. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 2012, 42, 151–158.
[18] D.C.L. Mohren, G.M.H. Swaen, I. Kant, L.G.P.M. van Amelsvoort, P.J.A. Borm and J.M.D. Galama. Common infections and the role of burnout in a Dutch working population. J. Psychosom. Res., 2003, 55(3): 201–208.
[19] S. Molamed, A., Shirom, S. Toker, S. Berliner, and I. Shapira. Burnout and risk of cardiovascular disease: Evidence, possible causal paths, and promising research directions. Psychological Bulletin, 2006, 132, 327–353.
[20] K.. Ahola. Occupational burnout and health. 2007, Helsinki, Finland: Finnish Institute Occupational Health
[21] S.J. Ackerman and M.J. Hilsenroth. A review of therapist characteristics and techniques positively impacting the therapeutic alliance. Clinical Psychology Review, 2003, 23, 1-33.
[22] K. S. Pope, B. G. Tabachnick, and P. Keith-Spiegel. Ethics of practice: The beliefs and behaviors of psychologists as therapists. American Psychologist, 1987, 42, 993-1006
[23] G. M. Alarcon. A meta-analysis of burnout with job demands, resources, and attitudes. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 2011, 79, 549–562. http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1016/j.jvb.2011.03.007
[24] B. W. Swider and R. D. Zimmerman, Born to burnout: A meta-analytic path model of personality, job burnout, and work outcomes. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 2010 76, 487-506. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2010.01.003
[25] P. A. Rupert, and K. A. Baird, Managed care and the independent practice of psychology.Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 2004, 35, 185-193.
[26] P. Rupert and J. Kent. Gender and work setting differences in career-sustaining behaviors and burnout among professional psychologists. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 2007, 38(1), 88-96.
[27] K. D. Killian. Helping till it hurts? A multimethod study of compassion fatigue, burnout, and self-care in clinicians working with trauma survivors. Traumatology, 2008, 14 (2), 32-44
[28] C. L. Cordes and T. W. Dougherty. A review and an integration of research on job burnout. Academy of Management Review, 1993, 18(4), 621–656
[29] F. Kigozi, J. Ssebunnya, D. Kizza, S. Cooper, and S. Ndyanabangi. An overview of Uganda’s mental health care system: results from an assessment using the World Health Organization’s assessment instrument for mental health systems WHOAIMS, 2010 Retrieved 2011, December 3, 2011, from
[30] V. C. Thorsen A. L., Teten Tharp and T. Meguid High rates of burnout among maternal health staff at a referral hospital in Malawi: A cross-sectional study. BioMed Central Nursing, 2011, 23, 9.
[31] G. Acker. The challenges in providing services to clients with mental illness: Managed care, burnout and somatic symptoms among social workers. Community Mental Health Journal, 2010, 46(6):591–600.
[32] D. M. Ndetei, M. Pizzo, H. Maru, F. A. Ongecha, L. I. Khasakhala, V. Mutiso, et al. Burnout in staff working at the Mathari psychiatric hospital. African Journal of Psychiatry, 2008, 11, 199–203.
[33] G. M. Acker. An examination of the relationships between workers and agencies characteristics and three outcome variables: Burnout, role stress, and intent to quit. American Journal of Psychiatric Rehabilitation, 2008, 11(4), 295-309. doi:10.1080/15487760802186311
[34] S. Oddie, and L. Ousley. Assessing burn-out and occupational stressors in a medium secure service [Electronic version]. The British Journal of Forensic Practice, 2007, 9 (2),32-48.
[35] M. G. Cassitto, E. Fattorini, R. Gilioli, C. Rengo and V. Gonik. Raising awareness to psychologicalharassment at work (Protecting workers health series). Geneva: World health Organization.http://www.who.int/occupational_health/publications/en/pwh4e.pdf, 2003, Accessed 5 Nov 2011.
[36] C. Maslach S. Jackson and M. Leiter Maslach Burnout Inventory Manual [1996]. 3rd ed. Palo Alto (CA): Consulting Psychologist Press
[37] J.K. Ito and C. Brotheridge. Resources, coping strategies, and emotional exhaustion: a conservation of resources perspective. J VocatBehav. 2003, 63: 490 509.
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Published
2015-02-19
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KABUNGA, A., Kihoro, M. F., Jane M, N., Christina N., N., & Mary W., N. (2015). Burnout Levels among Professional Counselors in Butabika and Mulago National Referral Hospitals in Uganda. American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences, 11(1), 96–103. Retrieved from https://asrjetsjournal.org/index.php/American_Scientific_Journal/article/view/582
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