Stress, burnout, and renewal activities of dental hygiene education administrators in six U.S. Midwestern States.

The purpose of this study was to explore the patterns that emerge among stress, burnout, and renewal activities of dental hygiene education administrators in six midwestern states in the United States. The study investigated the effects of stress on these administrators by identifying when stress and burnout occur, what precautions they take to prevent it, and what actions might combat stress and/or burnout once it has occurred. The administrators were asked to complete a demographic questionnaire, the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI)-Educators Survey, and an in-depth interview. The response rate to the demographic questionnaire and MBI-Educators Survey was 54.5 percent (30/55). Respondents were primarily Caucasian females (93 percent), at least fifty-one years of age (67 percent), employed in dental hygiene education at least twenty-one years (56 percent), and dental hygiene education administrators for less than ten years (55 percent). Almost half (43 percent) reported a moderate to high Emotional Exhaustion burnout score, one of three characteristics measured by the MBI-Educators Survey. All participants (100 percent) responded that stress had affected their personal and/or professional lives. The findings indicate that dental hygiene education administrators a) experience stress, b) experience patterns of stress, and c) use preventive strategies. Study participants felt that the stress and burnout they experienced may be altered through personal and/or professional lifestyle modifications and that additional training in stress management is needed.