Compassion Fatigue and Mental Health in Health Care Professionals

Compassion fatigue is a phenomenon that affects health care providers and impacts not only an individual’s professional life but also their personal life and mental health. Compassion fatigue has been described as “the convergence of secondary traumatic stress and cumulative burnout, a state of physical and mental exhaustion caused by a depleted ability to cope with one’s everyday environment” (Cocker & Joss, 2016, p. 1). Mental Health America conducted a survey in 2020 among 1,119 health care workers in the United States. This study included nurses, doctors, physician’s assistants, nurse practitioners, social workers, and support staff, among others. Researchers found that 93% of health care workers reported stress and 76% reported burnout (Mental Health America, n.d.).

At the health care administration and organizational level, compassion fatigue can lead to staffing shortages which directly influence patient care. Compassion fatigue results in increased risk for medical errors, poor patient outcomes, and decreased patient satisfaction. It can also directly affect an individual’s relationships with his or her colleagues and cause job dissatisfaction, increased absenteeism, and may result in high turnover (Cocker & Joss, 2016). Staff vacancies within the health care system then lead to increased staffing issues and higher patient load within the field, which in turn contributes to additional stress and burnout.

At the individual level, compassion fatigue can affect an individual’s personal life outside of the workplace. It can negatively influence relationships with family and friends, contribute to poor overall life satisfaction, in addition to poor mental health outcomes, such as depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, or substance abuse (Grabbe et al., 2021). These mental health outcomes can potentially lead to distress, sleep disturbance, poor coping skills, self-medication with drugs or alcohol, self-harm, and suicidal or homicidal ideations.

Risk factors that often precede compassion fatigue include an individual’s role in direct patient care, health care specialty, emotional load, perceived obligation to employer, and stigma associated with asking for assistance (Franza et al., 2020). Although compassion fatigue has been a long-standing phenomenon within the health care industry, it has become increasingly prominent during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Research shows that commonly evaluated interventions for compassion fatigue include yoga, mindfulness meditation, music therapy, or a combination of these (Cocker & Joss, 2016). Addressing compassion fatigue is often approached on an individual level; however, interventions must be implemented on an organizational level to better mitigate and prevent future issues. Individuals who work in health care require five approaches from their organizations which include to be heard, to be protected, to be adequately prepared, to feel supported, and to feel cared for (Grabbe et al., 2021).

Occupational health nurses (OHNs) work to promote health and safety, prevent illness, and protect individuals from work-related hazards. Compassion fatigue, as it strongly correlates with poor mental health, must be addressed when looking at workplace education and interventions. This can be done by incorporating some of the interventions described above, such as worksite yoga and mindfulness meditation classes. This can also be done through mental health awareness campaigns, resilience training, policy changes, and referring individuals to employee assistance programs (EAPs). EAPs provide employees with mental health assessments, treatment referrals, and short-term therapy; however, availability of these services is largely based on the organization (U.S. Office of Personal Management, n.d.). OHNs can determine if their employer offers these services and learn how to refer an individual. If unavailable, they can assist with finding a local outpatient psychiatric provider. If there is concern of imminent danger, the OHN should refer the individual to the closest emergency department or call 911. By doing so, OHNs can ensure whole health for the employees they care for.