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The following is a summary of “Interplay between organizational culture and burnout among ICU professionals: A cross-sectional multicenter study,” published in the February 2025 issue of Journal of Critical Care by Kok et al. 

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to investigate the association between organizational culture and previously identified mediating risk factors for burnout, including work-life balance and moral distress, among Intensive care unit (ICU) professionals.  

They analyzed data from 11 ICUs, Emotional exhaustion, the primary burnout symptom, was measured using the validated Dutch version of the Maslach Burnout Inventory. Organizational culture was evaluated using the Culture of Care Barometer (CoCB), which assessed 5 aspects of workplace culture. Moral distress and work-life balance were assessed through validated questionnaires.  

The results showed that 696 ICU professionals (39.7%) responded. All aspects of the CoCB had a negative association with emotional exhaustion, the core symptom of burnout, in both univariable and multivariable models and 4 organizational culture aspects significantly influenced the serial association between moral distress, work-to-home spillovers, and emotional exhaustion. For these aspects, the total indirect association was equal to or greater than the total direct association.  

Investigators concluded that enhancing organizational culture indirectly lessened burnout in ICU professionals by reducing moral distress and improving work-life balance. 

Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0883944124004684