Disclosures: Francesca Filipetto, DO: No financial relationships or conflicts of interest

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate burnout in physiatrists and to characterize factors associated with burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic including financial stress factors such as income and debt burden.

Design: Cross-sectional studySetting : Survey distributed through email distribution list by Association of Academic Physiatrists and through Physiatry-related listservs. Surveys were completed following the first COVID-19 surge from July 21, 2020 to October 7, 2020.Participants : The survey was completed by 273 physiatrists, including 61 (22%) residents and fellows, and 212 (76.5%) attending physicians, of which 75 had less than 5 years in practice, 74 had 6-10 years in practice, 43 had 11-20 years in practice, and 25 had more than 20 years in practice.

Interventions: not applicable

Main Outcome Measures: Participant income, debt, and score on the Mini-Z Burnout Survey based on a 5- point Likert scale.

Results: An omnibus test of income and debt levels on burnout revealed a significant interaction (F=2.47, p=.045). When comparing high economic burden (i.e., High Debt and Low Income) to very low economic burden (i.e., Low Debt and High Income) there was a significant difference in burnout (t=2.22, p=.028) with very high burden respondents reporting significantly higher burnout (M=2.74, SD=0.98) compared to very low burden respondents (M=2.41, SD=0.87).Conclusions: High economic burden, as defined as lower income and higher debt, is significantly related to burnout as compared to low economic burden in physiatry health care providers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Level of Evidence: Level II

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PM&R Meeting Abstracts - https://pmrjabstracts.org/abstract/impact-of-financial-stress-during-the-covid-19-pandemic-on-physician-burnout-in-physical-medicine-and-rehabilitation/