People-Oriented Culture and Its Association With Burnout, Depressive Symptoms, and Sleep Problems During COVID-19 Pandemic Among EMS Providers in Korea.

Objective: This study examined how perceived people-oriented culture (POC) was associated with burnout, depressive symptoms, and sleep problems during the COVID-19 pandemic among emergency medical service (EMS) providers in Korea.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey among 693 EMS providers in 2021.

Results: Overall, prevalence of personal burnout, work-related burnout, and citizen-related burnout were 61.5%, 60.0%, and 60.6%, respectively. Prevalence of depressive symptoms was 25.1%. Prevalence of poor sleep quality, unrestful sleep, and sleep disturbance were 46.5%, 58.2%, and 52.2%, respectively. Compared to high POC group, higher prevalence of depressive symptoms was observed among medium (prevalence ratio: 1.57, 95% CI: 1.06, 2.32) and low (prevalence ratio: 2.70, 95% CI: 1.92, 3.79) POC group. Similar trends were observed in the analysis of burnout and sleep problems.

Conclusions: Our findings underscore that low POC could play a critical role in worsening burnout, depressive symptoms, and sleep problems among EMS providers.