JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Burnout is increasingly recognized as a critical concern in medical education due to its associations with reduced professional performance, decreased empathy, and increased risk of medical errors. With growing evidence that medical students commonly experience burnout and its associated health consequences (e.g., depression, and suicide), it is essential to explore factors that may protect against its harmful effects on student well-being. Although spirituality is often considered a potential factor supporting mental health and resilience, its role in buffering burnout among medical students has not been comprehensively reviewed.

Objective:

This scoping review seeks to map the extent, range, and characteristics of the literature examining the relationship between spirituality and burnout and defined forms of stress among medical students. Specifically, the review will: (1) describe the nature and direction of reported associations; and (2) identify gaps to inform priorities for future research.

Methods:

This scoping review will follow PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews) guidelines to ensure a systematic and transparent process. Studies that examine the relationship between spirituality and burnout, or related outcomes and correlates such as anxiety, depression, stress, or suicidality, among undergraduate medical students will be included. Only studies that focus specifically on medical students rather than other healthcare professionals/professional students will be considered. Eligible articles will be peer-reviewed and published in English. A comprehensive search will be conducted across four databases including MEDLINE (PubMed), APA PsycInfo, Scopus, and Embase. Two reviewers will independently screen titles and abstracts, followed by full-text review to determine final inclusion. Discrepancies will be resolved through discussion with a third reviewer until consensus is reached. Data will be descriptively analyzed and summarized in charts and tables. A narrative summary of findings will accompany these visuals to interpret the results.

Results:

This review will summarize studies investigating spirituality and religious practices in relation to burnout among undergraduate medical students. Findings will map how these constructs are defined and measured, the types of associations reported, and key gaps in the evidence. The database search was completed in July 2025, and results will be disseminated through conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications.

Conclusions:

This review will offer a comprehensive overview of how spirituality and religious practices have been examined in relation to burnout and stress among undergraduate medical students. It is anticipated that the findings will reveal diverse conceptualizations and experiences of spirituality within medical training, as well as varying patterns in how these practices relate to student wellbeing. The review is expected to highlight key gaps in the evidence and inform directions for future research on factors that may support medical student mental health. Clinical Trial: This protocol is registered on the Open Science Framework: https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/TQWSK