Medical Oncologists with Imposter Syndrome Suffer from Burnout

Abstract Purpose Imposter Syndrome(IS) is defined as “the inability to internalize achievement and a tendency to attribute success to external factors such as luck, error, or personal connections. The study aimed to evaluate the factors associated with IS and its association with burnout(BO) in medical oncologists (MOs). Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted focusing on the MOs actively working in the field. The IS scores (ISS) was tested using the Clance imposter phenomenon Scale and BO was tested by using the Maslach burnout inventory. The subscales of BO; emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalization (DP), and personal accomplishment (PA) were analyzed. The characteristics associated with IS and BO were tested. Results In the study, 417 MOs were evaluated. The mean of ISS was 50.8+/-15.3, and 122(29.3%) participants had high ISS. The multivariate analysis revealed that female gender was the only factor associated with high ISS (OR: 1.85, CI95%, 1.1–2.9, p = 0.009). While there was a strong positive correlation between ISS and EE (r = 0.54, p < 0.001) and DP (r = 0.48, p < 0.001), a strong and negative correlation was found between ISS and PA score (r= -0.41, p < 0.001). High ISS score was the only statistically significant parameter associated with a high EE score, high DP scores and low PA scores. Conclusion The results of the study indicated that IS is prevalent in MOs. The MOs with IS were more emotionally exhausted and more depersonalized. In addition, they had less feeling of personal accomplishment. The IS and its consequences on MOs should be further studied and the strategies to cope with IS should be developed.