To determine the relationship between the level of quality of professional life and the characteristics of the burnout syndrome of the nursing staff in the intensive care unit.An analytic cross-sectional study was conducted in the intensive care unit of a public hospital in Mérida (Venezuela), with the participation of 40 nurses from a total population of 43. The Professional Quality of Life of 35 items (QoPL-35) and Maslach Burnout Inventory scales were used.Of the participants, 67.5% were professionals and 32.5% were residents, < 41 years of age (75%) and of female sex (90%). The professional quality of life was regular (median = 213), the intrinsic motivation dimension was the best scored (median = 76), followed by that of workload (median = 68) and that of directive support (median = 65). The prevalence of high burnout syndrome was 22.5%; emotional exhaustion affected 75.5% of the participants and 37.5% had low personal achievement. The level of professional quality of life was related with the severity of the burnout syndrome (p=0.04).The professional quality of life of the nurses in the ICU studied was regular and is associated with a higher risk of suffering severe burnout syndrome.