Analysis of the current situation and influencing factors of burnout of medical insurance specialists in public hospitals in Guangxi, China under the background of the “Sanming Model” reform– cases of healthcare system reform from low and middle income regions

BACKGROUND: Occupational burnout is very common among hospital workers; however, previous research has primarily focused on doctors and nurses, and research on medical insurance specialists (MIS) in hospitals is relatively scarce. In recent years, reforms in China’s healthcare system have increased the workload of MIS, and thus, the aim of our study is to investigate the current status and influencing factors of occupational burnout among MIS in public hospitals. METHODS: A large-scale survey was conducted in 2023 in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China, surveying a total of 3345 MIS from 1735 public hospitals in the region. The Chinese version of the validated Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI-GS) was used to assess occupational burnout, and independent t-tests, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and multiple linear regression were employed to assess the effects of demographic characteristics, work-related factors, and other variables on burnout. RESULTS: The total score on the MBI-GS was 1.80 ± 1.04, with an overall burnout detection rate of 60%, primarily consisting of mild burnout. Five variables, including age, professional title, average monthly income, daily working hours, and weekly overtime frequency, were found to be significant (α = 0.005) factors influencing burnout among MIS. CONCLUSION: Our study reveals that occupational burnout is prevalent among MIS in public hospitals in the region, with rates comparable to the average burnout prevalence among healthcare workers in the country. Therefore, it is necessary to implement measures to address and mitigate this issue.