The integration of the OLBI into Bravely Connect, has proved to be a valuable tool for those seeking a comprehensively assessment for work-related burnout.

In response to inquiries from therapists, we delve into the essence of the OLBI below, offering elucidations and additional insights to foster a nuanced understanding of its application and significance.

In the context of Bravely Connect, an operating system which streamlines therapist and clinic workflows, the OLBI emerges as a pivotal asset. 

What is the OLBI, and how does it work?

The Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) is a self-report measure that assesses the severity of work-related burnout.

It consists of 16 questions to which an individual indicates their level of agreement with statements related to professional burnout.

The OLBI assesses burnout using two sub-scales: exhaustion and disengagement. Higher scores on the OLBI indicate higher levels of burnout.

What makes the OLBI appropriate for Assessing Burnout?

The OLBI measures emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and reduced professional efficacy. It is a reliable and valid measure, as multiple studies have used it to assess populations of workers in high stress occupations, such as healthcare, education, social services, or industrial work.

The OLBI's focus on exhaustion and disengagement make it useful for measuring burnout in our fast paced world.

Why is the OLBI effective in measuring burnout, especially in high-stress work environments?

The Oldenburg Burnout Inventory is recognised for its efficacy in measuring burnout, particularly in high-stress work settings, owing to several key factors. First and foremost, the OLBI has undergone extensive cross-cultural validation studies, in different countries such as Germany, the United States, and Greece.

This rigorous validation process ensures that the OLBI is applicable and reliable across diverse groups of high-stress workforces, providing a comprehensive understanding of burnout that transcends cultural boundaries. 

Additionally, the OLBI's focus on two dimensions, exhaustion and disengagement, coupled with the inclusion of mixed (both positively and negatively worded) items, addresses limitations associated with other burnout measures. This approach makes the OLBI more nuanced to the experiences of individuals in high-stress professions, or across a variety of challenging occupational contexts.

How to calculate a score for the OLBI?

To score the OLBI manually, each answer is given a value:

• Strongly agree = 1, Agree = 2, Disagree = 3, Strongly disagree = 4

• These values are reversed for half of the questions to reflect the nature of the statement: 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12

Once values have been assigned to each answer, sum the eight items for each subscale:

• Exhaustion = 2, 4, 5, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16

• Disengagement = 1, 3, 6, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15

• To get a total burnout score, add these values together

Using an outcome measures is a valuable way of providing professional, measurement based care, with such an important function, it's important to take your time in scoring the results.

If you’d like a much easier way to assign, score and evaluate measures, all with only a few clicks, take a look at Bravely Connect. It’s designed to streamline therapists’ workloads, saving their time and effort across a range of important tasks.

• For more details on scoring the OLBI and it's limitations, check out our other article →

Understanding OLBI Scoring: What Do the Results Mean?

Higher scores indicate higher levels of burnout, with the subscales for exhaustion and disengagement relating to each of the characteristics defining the feeling of burnout.

Some clients may feel enthusiastic about their job, but be over-worked, so it’s important to evaluate how they score on the subscales along with a clinical interview. Please note that OLBI scores are not diagnostic for specific mental health conditions, but serve as a tool to track an individual's perception of burnout in their professional life.

Benefits of Integrating OLBI in Employee Well-Being Programs

For therapists who are working in an EAP role or running employee well-being programs, the use of the OLBI provides a valuable method for assessing burnout, both on an individual and group basis.

The OLBI can be used as a standardised assessment for workplaces to identify prevalence of burnout among stuff, with a pattern of high scores indicating there may be a need for a culture adjustment. It can play a crucial role in identifying and monitoring burnout levels within a company, over a period of time.

How to Choose Between OLBI and MBI for Burnout Assessment

Choosing between the OLBI and the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) depends on specific needs. It is worth noting that the OLBI has been created to address some criticisms of the MBI, as the OLBI goes further to evaluate an individuals physical symptoms. Therapists should consider the application, it’s requirements and use professional judgement in their choice.

It’s important to note that the OLBI cannot be used to diagnose specific mental health conditions, it is designed to measure how someone feels about their role and their work, and should always be used as a standardised measure as part of a wider assessment.

How to assign outcome measures like the OLBI, faster?

One of the biggest time sinks for therapists who practice measurement based care, is the time it takes to assign, score and track outcome measures. Between printing, instructing, scoring and tracking, it can often take up to an hour - you can see how it quickly becomes a major time sink.

We built Bravely Connect to save the time spent on these repetitive tasks, freeing up therapists time, and reducing burnout on the most important pillars of our mental healthcare system.

• See the use the OLBI on Bravely Connect →

We've included the OLBI outcome measure on Bravely Connect as part of our commitment to better equipping therapists, and our belief we all deserve to work in supportive safe organisations. I hope this has provided some valuable insights, and perhaps sparked some interest in using measures like this one.

We hope to enable therapists to work with different clients, in new settings and feel supported in their business and practice related pursuits. By making outcome measures easier to assign and score, as well as other useful features like scheduling, notes and record keeping, our mission is to reduce 90% of therapist admin, and create more positive and productive therapeutic relationships.

If you have any questions, an outcome measure you'd like to use with clients or see a similar article for, please get in touch with us.