BURNOUT SYNDROME IN HEALTH EDUCATION: THE HIDDEN COST OF ACADEMIC ROUTINE
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.66104/vwbxc320Keywords:
Higher Education, Professional Burnout, Psychological Stress, Health Sciences Students, Mental HealthAbstract
Student Burnout (SB) is a form of exhaustion that permeates higher education in health, especially in contexts marked by curricular overload, pressure for performance, and the normalization of psychological suffering. In health science courses, this debate acquires special relevance in describing persistent forms of exhaustion, self-doubt, and reduced efficacy among students subjected to prolonged academic demands. This study aimed to analyze associated factors, repercussions, and possibilities for preventing burnout in health science students. An integrative review was conducted, guided by the PICo strategy, with searches in the PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. Publications in Portuguese and English between 2009 and January 2026 were considered. After screening in successive stages, inspired by the PRISMA flowchart, 32 studies comprised the narrative synthesis. The most recurring repercussions indicate psychological distress, high levels of depersonalization, a decline in quality of life, disbelief in the course of study, barriers to seeking help, and potential harm to the educational process. These indicators extend beyond the workplace and emerge from a pedagogical and institutional arrangement that combines intense workloads, competition, insecurity about the professional future, and fragile support networks. The discussion suggests that higher education in health operates as a pathogenic mechanism: extensive curricula, extreme competitiveness, and heroic idealizations of the profession erode well-being even before entry into the job market. The literature indicates that individual interventions, such as physical activity, psychotherapy, and mindfulness practices, can alleviate symptoms, but have limited reach. In conclusion, addressing student burnout requires shifting the focus from individual blame to institutional responsibility in the production, prevention, and management of academic suffering, and going beyond individual and medicalized solutions. It demands the strengthening of resilient coping strategies, the recognition of the right to disconnect, and institutional curricular reforms that incorporate mental health as a structuring axis of education.
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