Hospitals Creating Programs for Nurses to Combat 'Compassion Fatigue'
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This is a discussion on Hospitals Creating Programs for Nurses to Combat 'Compassion Fatigue' in Nursing News, part of General Nursing ... Programs for Nurses to Combat "Compassion Fatigue "Bruises and pulled muscles, hope and...
by I love my cat! Oct 3, '08Programs for Nurses to Combat "Compassion Fatigue
"Bruises and pulled muscles, hope and heartbreak – emotional and physical fatigue have contributed to a profound nurse shortage in hospitals across the country."
"Nurses typically work 12-hour shifts, shuttling between ailing patients, demanding doctors and anxious families in the waiting room. As stress builds and meals are eaten on the run or missed altogether, nurses sometimes lose the energy to conjure sympathy for those they’re treating.
Health-care workers have higher rates of substance abuse and suicide, and elevated levels of depression and anxiety relating to job stress, according to a report this year by the Department of Health and Human Services. In many cases, the caregivers simply burn out and leave the profession, creating more stress for those who remain."
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Well, I've always believed that if a person cannot care for themselves, how in the heck can they be expected to care for others!
I am guilty of this.
When I first started Nursing many years ago, I always worked through my breaks and lunches, stayed OT and picked up shifts because the facility was desperate. "Hey everyone, look at me, Martyr Mary! Look how hard I work. Look how dedicated I am! I will even let my health and personal life suffer for YOU"
I was naive.
I thought my co-workers and employers would have more respect for me. Pretty much the opposite happened and I soon realized I was a door-mat. I quickly learned that few people respect a person that cannot take care of and stand up for themselves.
I now take care of ME first! No, it is not selfish. It is my life and I only get one crack at it.
I am so much healthier and happier.
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Oct 3, '08 by herring_RNI hope in addition to creating a nurses retreat in a break room the hospital staffs so the nurses can take their breaks without neglcting their patients.
A break relief nurse who takes report and assumes responsibility for your patients is necessary. -
Oct 4, '08 by cjmjmomInteresting...hospitals creating programs for nurses to help them combat compassion fatigue...How about lets get ENOUGH staffing so the nurses can do the kind of job they were educated to do and ENOUGH staffing so breaks and lunches can be taken routinely; and lets get enough supplies stocked so the nurses do not have to run around finding what they need to do their job; and lets get enough secretaries to do the phone answering and clerical duties;and let's not forget to give compassion classes to managers, doctors and administrators so they will treat the BEDSIDE NURSES WITH THE RESPECT AND COMPASSION THEY DESERVE TO BE TREATED WITH! -
Oct 4, '08 by loricatusQuote from snappy01Nope, they say the key is deep breathing HA HA HAInteresting...hospitals creating programs for nurses to help them combat compassion fatigue...How about lets get ENOUGH staffing so the nurses can do the kind of job they were educated to do and ENOUGH staffing so breaks and lunches can be taken routinely; and lets get enough supplies stocked so the nurses do not have to run around finding what they need to do their job; and lets get enough secretaries to do the phone answering and clerical duties;and let's not forget to give compassion classes to managers, doctors and administrators so they will treat the BEDSIDE NURSES WITH THE RESPECT AND COMPASSION THEY DESERVE TO BE TREATED WITH!
gonzo1 and herring_RN like this. -
Oct 4, '08 by janhetheringtonWho has time for this? No matter how well we're staffed, the constant demands of new policies, ever-increasing documentation, constantly changing equipment, physicians who pop up at the most inopportune moments, and most of all, the hordes of telephoning, callbell-light ringing, hallway stalking, bedside-vigiling family and friends who come and stay and stay and never go away, makes it a luxury to spend two minutes in the bathroom attending to the most elemental needs. /The whole patient-care model needs a serious restructuring, starting with deciding to let the nurses nurse and not hostess. But what administration cares enough to do that? Especially if their competitors won't do it first?
- Oct 4, '08 by Iam46yearsoldWho comes up with all these terms.
Compassion Fatigue
I want that the job, of the person who coins all these terms - Oct 5, '08 by I love my cat!Quote from loricatus....or you can do a puzzle and some push-ups like the article states...now, GET BACK TO WORK!!!Nope, they say the key is deep breathing HA HA HA
- Oct 5, '08 by I love my cat!Quote from Iam46yearsoldWho comes up with all these terms.
Compassion Fatigue
I want that the job, of the person who coins all these terms
LOL! Probably a person who has never had compassion for a patient or fatigue from a job.
Just a wild guess...........
herring_RN and cjmjmom like this. - Oct 5, '08 by RN1982What a joke. The administration can busy themselves with these "programs" yet cannot properly staff their hospitals and we're the one's having "compassion fatigue".
- Oct 5, '08 by Iam46yearsoldQuote from I love my cat!LOL! Probably a person who has never had compassion for a patient or fatigue from a job.
Just a wild guess...........
Actually I do have a lot of compassion. But I also love my work, my life. So truthfully, I have never been fatigued. So how are you.
