July 30, 2024

Compassion Fatigue

Discover how compassion fatigue, characterized by declining empathy and emotional drain, affects healthcare professionals and first responders. Learn to identify warning signs early and explore effective self-care strategies to protect your mental wellbeing while delivering exceptional patient care.

July 30, 2024

Author

Christine Turiano

Care Coordinator Nurse

RN

Christine graduated from UST and from NC’s Palliative and Community Mental Health programs in 2019.

What happens to our helpers who are continuously hearing or seeing difficult situations while also providing care, support, and protection?

Compassion fatigue, a condition marked by diminishing empathy and emotional exhaustion, is increasingly affecting healthcare professionals and first responders. Defined as the stress resulting from prolonged exposure to others’ suffering and crisis situations, this syndrome challenges the core identity of caregivers, leading to reduced effectiveness and withdrawal from patients.

Originally identified in the 1980s, compassion fatigue now expands beyond medical staff to include police and emergency workers, highlighting the urgency for strategies to address this growing concern in caregiving professions.


Warning Signs

Fatigue can manifest through various signs, including withdrawing from social interactions, struggling to focus, experiencing diminished empathy, feeling physically drained and prone to irritation, as well as grappling with heightened levels of anxiety and sadness. Individuals experiencing compassion fatigue may exhibit withdrawal behaviors, emotional detachment, reduced stress tolerance, and increased sensitivity to their environment.

Recognizing the early warning signs of compassion fatigue is crucial in preventing negative effects to the mental and physical wellbeing of a person.


Strategies for Self-Care

Compassion fatigue can easily affect those in helping professions, and includes medical professionals, first responders, and even family caregivers. The line between compassion fatigue and the fulfilment found in the caregiver role is often blurred. It’s important that anyone who is susceptible takes proper steps to protect themselves, and that they are mindful of the effects on their own lives. As much as we want to help others and provide nurturing care, we must also look inward and ensure that we are meeting our own mental health needs.



Here are a few ways in which one can manage their mental well being:

  • Focus on balancing your work and personal life
  • Set healthy personal and emotional boundaries
  • Practice maintaining your compassion and empathy without overly taking on someone else's pain
  • Seek quality social support

Thank you to all our helpers, but know you’re not alone.

Helpers also need help sometimes.

Written by the following members of the Serefin Nursing Team:

Contributors to this post

Below are the additional team members who contributed to this blog post.

Catherine Wong

RN, BScN

Catherine Wong is a registered nurse licensed in Ontario and Quebec. Catherine is a Care Coordination team lead and is actively involved in educating others through newsletters and articles.

Dragana Milivojevic

RPN

Dragana is a Care Coordinator at Serefin.

Katie Vandenborre

RN

Katie is a a highly motivated individual who is passionate about everything she does. Katie thrives in high pressure environments while consistently bringing an optimistic attitude to the work place. Always eager to put her skills to the test while acquiring new ones to be learned from her employer. Katie is also fluent in both English and French.

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