Work Engagement and Burnout Prevention Strategies in Nigerian Teaching Hospitals: A Study of University College Hospital, Ibadan

This study examines work engagement levels and burnout prevention strategies among healthcare professionals at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, South West Nigeria. Healthcare worker burnout has emerged as a global HR crisis, and Nigerian teaching hospitals, burdened with chronic understaffing, resource constraints, and high patient loads, represent one of the most acute manifestations of this challenge on the African continent. A professional practice research design was employed, and data were collected from 95 doctors, nurses, and paramedical staff using the Maslach Burnout Inventory and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale. The Job Demands-Resources Model and Self-Determination Theory provide the theoretical scaffolding. Findings reveal that clinical staff in departments with peer support networks, protected rest periods, and access to occupational health counselling demonstrate significantly lower burnout scores and higher work engagement levels compared to those without these provisions. The study identifies emotional exhaustion as the most prevalent burnout dimension among nursing staff, while depersonalization is more common among physicians in high-pressure specialties such as emergency medicine and surgery. UCH's existing welfare programs are found to be insufficient in scale and awareness, reaching less than 30 percent of staff. Recommendations include embedding burnout screening into bi-annual health checks, establishing peer wellness champion programs in every clinical department, and advocating with the Federal Ministry of Health for nursing staff ratios that prevent chronic overload. This study is directly relevant to hospital management boards, medical officers, and healthcare policymakers. Keywords: work engagement, burnout, healthcare professionals, UCH Ibadan, job demands-resources