Daily spiritual experience and mental health among healthcare workers: the role of burnout

Abstract

Objective This study aimed to clarify the role of burnout on the relationship between daily spiritual experience and mental health among healthcare workers in Hong Kong. Methods Using a cross-sectional design, 312 healthcare workers in a mental rehabilitation institution completed a self-administered questionnaire composed of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI), and the Daily Spiritual Experience Scale (DSES). Among the respondents, 77.7% were females, 22.3% were males. The mean age of the participants were 38.6 years (SD = 9.91). Multivariate regression was used to test the role of burnout on spirituality and its mental health outcomes. Results Daily spiritual experience was negatively related to individuals’ levels of burnout and mental distress. Healthcare workers who reported higher levels of daily spiritual experience demonstrated significantly lower levels of burnout (β= -0.23, p< 0.01), depression (β= -0.35, p< 0.01) and anxiety (β= -0.23, p< 0.01). After adjustment for age, education level, marital status and staff ranking, significant partial mediating effect of burnout was found on the relationship between daily spiritual experience and depression (z = -3.17, p< 0.01), accounted for 26.1% of the variation in depression. Besides, burnout completely mediated the relationship between daily spiritual experience and anxiety (z = -3.25, p< 0.01), accounted for 34.9% of the variation in anxiety. Conclusions Burnout qualifies as a mediator, suggesting that considerable variance in depression and anxiety could be due to changes in burnout levels. In addition, day-to-day spiritual practice is protective against burnout and mental health problems. Future intervention could incorporate spirituality training to reduce burnout and thereby improving well-being among healthcare workers.