The Relationship Between Grit, Burnout, and Well‐being in Emergency Medicine Residents

• Published in: AEM education and training Vol. 3; no. 1; pp. 14 - 19
• Main Authors: Dam, Aaron, Perera, Thomas, Jones, Michael, Haughy, Marianne, Gaeta, Theodore, Cico, Stephen J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States John Wiley and Sons Inc 01.01.2019
• Subjects: Original Contribution; Original Contributions
• ISSN: 2472-5390; 2472-5390
• DOI: 10.1002/aet2.10311

Background Burnout has become endemic in medicine, across all specialties and levels of training. Grit, defined as “perseverance and passion for long‐term goals,” attempts to quantify the ability to maintain sustained effort throughout an extended length of time. Our objective is to assess burnout and well‐being and examine their relationship with the character trait, grit, in emergency medicine residents. Methods In Fall 2016, we conducted a multicenter cross‐sectional survey at five large, urban, academically affiliated emergency departments. Residents were invited to anonymously provide responses to three validated survey instruments; the Short Grit Scale, the Maslach Burnout Inventory, and the World Health Organization‐5 Well‐Being Index. Results A total of 222 residents completed the survey (response rate = 86%). A total of 173 residents (77.9%) met criteria for burnout and 107 residents (48.2%) met criteria for low well‐being. Residents meeting criteria for burnout and low well‐being had significantly lower mean grit scores than those that did not meet criteria. Residents with high grit scores had lower odds of experiencing burnout and low well‐being (odds ratio [OR] = 0.26, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.46–0.85; and [OR] = 0.33, 95% CI = 0.16–0.72, respectively). Residents with low grit scores were more likely to experience burnout and more likely to have low well‐being (OR = 6.17, 95% CI = 1.43–26.64; and OR = 2.76, 95% CI = 1.31–5.79, respectively). Conclusion A significant relationship exists between grit, burnout, and well‐being. Residents with high grit appear to be less likely to experience burnout and low well‐being while those with low grit are more likely to experience burnout and low well‐being.