Abstract
BACKGROUND: Burnout has been assessed by a variety of screening instruments worldwide. This systematic review investigated the characteristics and psychometric properties of these scales used during the COVID-19 pandemic to assess burnout among healthcare workers. METHODS: A systematic literature search and review was conducted based on four operational criteria: burnout scales, healthcare workers, psychometric properties, and COVID-19. We retrieved records from APA PsycInfo, APA PsycArticles, MEDLINE, Academic Search Complete, and EMBASE. All peer reviewed articles that assessed burnout in healthcare workers during COVID-19 were included. RESULTS: A total of 794 articles met the inclusion criteria, and 27 burnout scales were identified, two of which were developed during the pandemic. The scales varied in number of items, subscales, response options, language, and country of development. At least one psychometric property was reported for 19 of the 27 scales, and 15 scales demonstrated desirable internal consistency in this novel context. For validity, 9 out of 27 scales reported at least one psychometric property. This was predominantly for measures on structural validity. CONCLUSION: Although a wide range of scales were used to assess burnout in healthcare workers during COVID-19, the psychometric properties reported were predominantly on reliability rather than validity. The findings of this review can be used to guide appropriate instrument selection for burnout in crisis contexts such as the COVID-19 pandemic. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: PROSPERO registration database: CRD42023414070.