Anxiety symptoms and burnout among Chinese medical staff of intensive care unit: the moderating effect of social support

BACKGROUND: Social support can be a critical resource to help medical staff cope with stressful events; however, the moderating effect of social support on the relationship between burnout and anxiety symptoms has not yet been explored. METHODS: The final sample was comprised of 514 intensive care unit physicians and nurses in this cross-sectional study. Questionnaires were used to collect data. A moderated model was used to test the effect of social support. RESULTS: The moderating effect of social support was found to be significant (b = − 0.06, p = 0.04, 95%CI [− 0.12, − 0.01]). The Johnson-Neyman technique indicated that when social support scores were above 4.26 among intensive care unit medical staff, burnout was not related to anxiety symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to test the moderating effect of social support on the relationship between burnout and anxiety symptoms among intensive care unit staff.