Burnout is real. In May 2019, The World Health Organisation (WHO) recognised burnout as a syndrome, specifically related to workplace stress. The new definition of burnout has been classified in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) eleventh edition (ICD-11).
They listed three symptoms to help identify a worker suffering from the phenomenon as:
- Feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion.
- Increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism to one’s job.
- Reduced professional efficacy.
In July 2019, a study on mice, published in Cell (Vol.178, issue 3), showed that it is possible to inhibit the behaviours that can lead to burnout. The study’s authors found that a protein called nociceptin, which is primarily linked to motivation, could potentially be inhibited through medication.
Speaking on the topic, Dr Michael Musker, senior research fellow, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, stated, “Burnout is an insidious syndrome that becomes apparent after long periods of exposure to stress.”
There is a moral issue to consider when dealing with this syndrome, as explained by Cary Cherniss, Ph.D., professor emeritus of applied psychology, Rutgers University, who said, “The factor that is probably most important is the behaviour of one’s boss." He went on to say, "Any intervention that targets the individual is like paddling upstream. It's much better to look at the work environment instead."
A nociceptin-inhibiting drug is now in clinical trials for pharmaceutical use and the debate rages on. We will update this article as more gets written in the journals.
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
