Evidence-based treatments for PTSD and VHA provider burnout: The impact of cognitive processing and prolonged exposure therapies

This preliminary study examined the relationship between burnout and the use of evidence-based psychotherapies (EBPs) for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among Veterans Health Administration (VHA) mental health clinicians. Recruitment was directed through VHA PTSD Clinical Teams (PCTs) across the United States based on a nationwide mailing list of PCT clinic directors. Participants completed an electronic survey assessing provider demographics, EBP usage, perceptions of EBPs’ effectiveness, manual adherence, and burnout (assessed through the Maslach Burnout Inventory-General Survey [MBI-GS]). No significant relationship was found between treatments used and burnout. Older clinicians and those with better adherence to the Prolonged Exposure (PE) manual reported higher Professional Efficacy. Older clinician age was associated with lower Cynicism scores on the MBI-GS. The findings of this study raise a number of important questions regarding the relationship between evidence-based treatments and provider burnout and underscore the need for additional research to better understand these associations.