Sources of stress, psychological distress and burnout in psychiatrists

Aims To assess the degree of psychological morbidity and burnout in 138 psychiatrists in three Manchester teaching hospitals. Results The results for senior house officers (SHOs), registrars, senior registrars and consultants were compared. The overall response rate was 76.8%. There was no significant difference in psychological morbidity between the three training grades, but SHOs and registrars reported significantly higher levels of burnout than either senior registrars or consultants. Dealing with violent patients was stressful for all psychiatrists, no matter what the grade. Clinical implications Factors related to job stress in psychiatry need to be addressed. In particular, the provision of safer working environments needs to be considered for psychiatrists at all levels of training.