A systematic review of occupational stress and burnout in emergency medical technician and paramedic populations and associated consequences.

Background: With increasing job demands, structural reorganization, and lack of support, occupational stress and burnout is on the rise. These conditions can manifest in various manners that can have detrimental physical impacts such as insomnia, weight changes, and chronic fatigue. Additionally, there can be socio-emotional consequences such as strained relationships, increase in depression, and hopelessness. Within the healthcare industry, many studies have focused on physicians and nurses but have failed to investigate other healthcare providers.

Methods: This systematic review was conducted within emergency medical technician (EMT) and paramedic populations. Search terms included '(stress) AND (EMT OR paramedic) AND (manage*)' through the PubMed database. Associated title/abstract screening and subsequent full text review were completed through Covidence. Inclusion criteria for measurements included physiological indices of stress, questionnaires, and/or interviews.

Results: Themes of interest included physical and socioemotional impacts of occupational stress and coping strategies. For example, EMTs and paramedics suffer from higher levels of stress and insomnia than other medical professionals and the general public. Coping strategies such as increased substance use and talking to family/friends were common given the high prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder and emotional exhaustion.

Conclusion: This systematic review revealed that occupational stress and burnout are highly prevalent among EMTs and paramedics. Given the severity of symptoms, it is imperative to design and implement programs to reduce burnout. Providing greater administrative support along with mindfulness-based interventions has shown to be effective in reducing burnout in the short term. While these interventions are not effective preventative measures, future studies must be done to better understand how organizations can recognize unique stressors of these occupations and provide greater support for their employees.