{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,24]],"date-time":"2026-02-24T10:05:34Z","timestamp":1771927534846,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":52,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,27]],"date-time":"2026-01-27T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1769472000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Public Health"],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Objective<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Village doctors serve as the primary gatekeepers of healthcare in rural China. They often face heavy workloads, which may place them at increased risk of burnout and psychological distress. However, evidence regarding the association between different dimensions of burnout and mental health among this group remains limited. This study aimed to: (1) estimate the prevalence of burnout and probable mental health problems among village doctors in Xun County; and (2) examine the factors influencing village doctors\u2019 mental health and its associations with different dimensions of burnout.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Method<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 769 village doctors in Xun County, Henan Province, China. Sociodemographic and job-related characteristics were collected. Burnout was assessed using the Maslach Burnout Inventory-General Survey, and mental health conditions was measured with the 12-item General Health Questionnaire. Chi-square tests, ANCOVA, and binary logistic regression were used to examine factors associated with mental health among village doctors.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Result<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Of the participants, 460 (59.8%) met criteria for burnout and 179 (23.3%) had mental health conditions. Significant differences between village doctors with and without mental health conditions were observed in family relationship, annual family income, annual income from public health services, physical exercise, and regular diet. ANCOVA revealed that after controlling for sociodemographic and job-related characteristics, there were significant group differences in emotional exhaustion (EE) and depersonalization (DP), but not in lack of personal accomplishment. Logistic regression indicated that poor family relationships (OR\u202f=\u202f1.73,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f0.043), EE (OR\u202f=\u202f1.10,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.001), and DP (OR\u202f=\u202f1.17,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.001) were positively associated with poor mental health, whereas having a higher annual family income (30,000\u201350,000 yuan vs. &amp;lt;30,000 yuan, OR\u202f=\u202f0.62,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f0.037) and receiving some income from public health services (&amp;lt;10,000 yuan vs. 0 yuan, OR\u202f=\u202f0.58,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f0.046) were inversely associated with poor mental health.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Burnout and mental health conditions are highly prevalent among village doctors in Xun County. Both demographic\/job characteristics and specific burnout dimensions (EE and DP) are associated with mental health conditions in this population. Strategies aimed at reducing EE and DP are necessary to improve mental health.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2026.1747850","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,27]],"date-time":"2026-01-27T06:41:10Z","timestamp":1769496070000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Exploring the relationship between burnout and mental health among village doctors: a study from Xun County, Henan Province"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Zihao","family":"Yang","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Psychological Counseling, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Henan Medical University (Henan Mental Hospital)","place":["Xinxiang, Henan, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Huashi","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Psychological Counseling, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Henan Medical University (Henan Mental Hospital)","place":["Xinxiang, Henan, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Wenjun","family":"Song","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Health, Fujian Medical University","place":["Fuzhou, Fujian, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Jinli","family":"Ren","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Psychological Counseling, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Henan Medical University (Henan Mental Hospital)","place":["Xinxiang, Henan, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Zixiu","family":"He","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Psychological Counseling, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Henan Medical University (Henan Mental Hospital)","place":["Xinxiang, Henan, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Chuansheng","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Psychological Counseling, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Henan Medical University (Henan Mental Hospital)","place":["Xinxiang, Henan, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Ruiling","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Psychological Counseling, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Henan Medical University (Henan Mental Hospital)","place":["Xinxiang, Henan, China"]},{"name":"Henan Collaborative Innovation Center of Prevention and treatment of mental disorder","place":["Xinxiang, Henan, China"]},{"name":"Brain Institute, Henan Academy of Innovations in Medical Science","place":["Zhengzhou, Henan, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,27]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"271","DOI":"10.3760\/cma.j.issn.1000-6672.2016.04.009","article-title":"Legal study on the development predicament and outlet of rural doctors","volume":"32","author":"Xiaolin","year":"2016","journal-title":"Chin J Hosp Adm"},{"key":"ref2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"49","DOI":"10.1186\/s12939-017-0541-y","article-title":"Extending access to essential services against constraints: the three-tier health service delivery system in rural China (1949\u20131980)","volume":"16","author":"Feng","year":"2017","journal-title":"Int J Equity Health"},{"key":"ref3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e16693","DOI":"10.1097\/md.0000000000016693","article-title":"Current status and job satisfaction of village doctors in western China","volume":"98","author":"Zhang","year":"2019","journal-title":"Medicine"},{"key":"ref4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"874","DOI":"10.1093\/fampra\/cmad063","article-title":"Preferences for training needs of village doctors in China: a systematic review","volume":"41","author":"Zhou","year":"2024","journal-title":"Fam Pract"},{"key":"ref5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2783","DOI":"10.12114\/j.issn.1007-9572.2020.00.284","article-title":"Work stress of doctors in towns and villages under the contracted family doctor service model: a comparative study","volume":"23","author":"Wang","year":"2020","journal-title":"Chin Gen Pract"},{"key":"ref6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1388831","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2024.1388831","article-title":"Job burnout and its influencing factors among village doctors during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study","volume":"12","author":"Zhao","year":"2024","journal-title":"Front Public Health"},{"key":"ref7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1549253","DOI":"10.3389\/forgp.2025.1549253","article-title":"Burnout phenomenon still unresolved. 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