Happiness of plastic surgeons in São Paulo, Brazil: A cross-sectional study of the Brazilian Plastic Surgery Society - SBCP-SP

▪ ABSTRACT

Introduction:

The career of the surgeon is challenging, and scientific research has identified a prevalence of burnout in approximately 1/3 of plastic surgeons. The data on well-being and factors associated with greater happiness available specifically to plastic surgery are inconsistent and limited. The objective is to evaluate the happiness of plastic surgeons in São Paulo and which factors are associated with greater happiness.

Method:

This was a primary, observational, descriptive, and cross-sectional study. An online survey was conducted using a validated instrument, the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS), which was sent to members of the Brazilian Society of Plastic Surgery-São Paulo (SBCP-SP) from December 2020 to July 2021. Sociodemographic and occupational characteristics were related to the degree of happiness measured.

Results:

The response rate was 12.18%, n = 268, with 70.1% males and 29.9% females. The score obtained using the SHS was 5.51 ± 0.13, and the mean score for males was 5.49 and for females was 5.57. A total of 143 (53.36%) of the participants were associate members, and 125 (46.64%) were full members of the SBCP. A total of 177 (66.04%) stated that if they could go back in time, they would choose plastic surgery again as a specialty, 62 (23.13%) perhaps, and 27 (10.82%) said that they would not.

Conclusion:

Plastic surgery in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, allows professionals in the specialty to have a career with high levels of happiness, including for females.

Keywords:

Surgery, Plastic - Happiness - Personal Satisfaction - Internship and Residency - Quality of Life

Institution: Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Escola Paulista de Medicina, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.

Publication History

Received: 21 March 2024

Accepted: 30 April 2024

Article published online:
22 May 2025

• REFERÊNCIAS

• 1 Sterling DA, Grow JN, Vargo JD, Nazir N, Butterworth JA. Happiness in Plastic Surgery: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of 595 Practicing Plastic Surgeons, Fellows, Residents, and Medical Students. Ann Plast Surg 2020; 84 (01) 90-94
• 2 Pulcrano M, Evans SR, Sosin M. Quality of Life and Burnout Rates Across Surgical Specialties: A Systematic Review. JAMA Surg 2016; 151 (10) 970-978
• 3 von Elm E, Altman DG, Egger M, Pocock SJ, Gøtzsche PC, Vandenbroucke JP. STROBE Initiative. T The Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) statement: guidelines for reporting observational studies. Lancet 2007; 370 (9596) 1453-1457
• 4 Eysenbach G. Improving the quality of web surveys: The Checklist for Reporting Results of Internet E-Surveys (CHERRIES). J Med Internet Res 2004; 6 (03) e34-e34
• 5 American Association for Public Opinion Research. 2021 Survey Disclosure Checklist. [Accessed 2021 Aug 7]. Available at: https://www.aapor.org/Standards-Ethics/AAPOR-Code-of-Ethics/Survey-Disclosure-Checklist.aspx
• 6 Choi BC, Pak AW. A catalog of biases in questionnaires. Prev Chronic Dis 2005; 2 (01) A13-A13
• 7 Chung WHJ, Gudal RA, Nasser JS, Chung KC. Critical Assessment of Surveys in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery: A Systematic Review. Plast Reconstr Surg 2019; 144 (05) 912e-922e
• 8 Lyubomirsky S, Lepper HS. A measure of subjective happiness: Preliminary reliability and construct validation. Soc Indic Res 1999; 46: 137-155
• 9 Damasio BF, Zanon C, Koller SH. Validation and psychometric properties of the Brazilian version of the subjective happiness scale. Univ Psychol 2014; 13 (01) 17-24
• 10 Capek L, Edwards DE, Mackinnon SE. Plastic surgeons: a gender comparison. Plast Reconstr Surg 1997; 99 (02) 289-299
• 11 Streu R, Hansen J, Abrahamse P, Alderman AK. Professional burnout among US plastic surgeons: results of a national survey. Ann Plast Surg 2014; 72 (03) 346-350
• 12 Qureshi HA, Rawlani R, Mioton LM, Dumanian GA, Kim JYS, Rawlani V. Burnout phenomenon in U.S. plastic surgeons: risk factors and impact on quality of life. Plast Reconstr Surg 2015; 135 (02) 619-626
• 13 Araujo LRR, Auersvald A, Gamborgi MA, Freitas RS. Perfil do cirurgião plástico paranaense. Rev Bras Cir Plást 2012; 27 (3 Suppl.1): 12-12
• 14 Arruda FC, Paula PR, Porto CC. Quality of Life of the Plastic Surgeon in the Midwest of Brazil. Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open 2018; 6 (08) e1802-e1802
• 15 Sociedade Brasileira de Cirurgia Plástica (SBCP). 2020 Demografia Cirurgia Plástica. Número de cirurgiões plásticos e perfil geoeconômico por município. [Acesso 2021 Ago 7]. Disponível em: http://www2.cirurgiaplastica.org.br/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/demografia_cirurgiaplastica_2020_alta.pdf
• 16 Thoma A, Cornacchi SD, Farrokhyar F, Bhandari M, Goldsmith CH. Evidence-Based Surgery Working Group. How to assess a survey in surgery. Can J Surg 2011; 54 (06) 394-402