The Relationship between Mental Illness and Career Burnout in High-Stress Industries in Australia: A Systematic Review

Authors- Hardik Patel

Abstract-This dissertation presents an attempt to understand through a systematic review the level of association between mental illness and career burnout experienced by professionals employed in high-stress jobs in Australia. High-stress industries, including healthcare, finance, and law enforcement, are particularly susceptible to the detrimental effects of mental health issues and burnout, which significantly impact employee well-being and organizational productivity. This study aims to determine the relationship between mental illness and burnout and examine the effectiveness of organizational strategies in providing solutions to minimize such risks. A systematic review of the literature was conducted with different databases, using predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Moreover, based on selected studies, the data were critically appraised for extraction in regard to the prevalence, etiology, and consequences of such mental illness and/or burnout in highly stressful occupations. An overview of organizational interventions designed to prevent mental illness and reduce burnout was also carried out. Key findings include the fact that mental disorders strongly associate with burnout at work and common stressors are work load, organizational culture, and lack of support. The established effective strategies include maintenance of an overall positive working environment, access to mental health resources, and implementation of flexible work policies. These improve the employees’ well-being and also benefit the overall organizational performance. This dissertation will contribute to this knowledge about the problems experienced in the mental health of workers within high-stress industries and also provide evidence-based recommendations to organizations toward fostering healthy work environments. The study highlighted effective preventive measures for managing the negative impacts of mental illness and burnout, which in the end benefit both the employees and the employers.

DOI: /10.61463/ijset.vol.12.issue5.257