Burnout among healthcare workers in Ghana: the role of psychosocial work environment in occupational well-being

Abstract

Burnout among healthcare workers is a growing concern worldwide, adversely affecting job satisfaction, performance, and well-being. Understanding the prevalence and psychosocial work-related factors that contribute to burnout is essential for designing effective interventions. We assessed the prevalence of burnout and examined psychosocial work environment factors as predictors among healthcare workers in Ghana. A cross-sectional design was used with 462 health workers from 14 healthcare facilities in three regions of Ghana (mean age = 34.05, SD = 5.62; 51.1% female). Descriptive statistics and regression modelling were used to analyse the data. Results shows that 33.3% reported moderate to high occupational exhaustion, 55.9% moderate to high depersonalization, and 95.2% low personal accomplishment. Job autonomy and control was associated with lower exhaustion and depersonalization and higher personal accomplishment. Workload and emotional demands, and performance feedback, were positively associated with exhaustion and depersonalization, while meaningful and skilful work, autonomy, and feedback positively predicted personal accomplishment. Burnout among Ghanaian health workers is high and closely linked to psychosocial work conditions. Interventions enhancing autonomy, managing workload, providing supportive feedback, and promoting emotional resilience are needed to reduce burnout and improve occupational well-being.