MattRN95

Thank you for sharing your burnout journey. It sounds like you're in a much better place now. I commend you on taking necessary steps to look within and discover a better path for yourself. I believe this is critical to creating a more functional work relationship and to actually enjoy your life again. Very inspiring!

Thanks for your comment Sally. I fully agree that burnout is way more complex than the area of workload mismatch (patients/not enough time). There are actually 5 other areas that when mismatched also contribute to burnout and they include control (perceived capacity to influence decisions affecting work, autonomy, role conflict), reward (the extent to which rewards-monetary, social and intrinsic are consistent with expectations), community (which is what you're referencing; the overall quality of social interaction and capacity to function as a team) fairness (the extent to which work decisions are perceived as being equitable), and values (the ideals and motivations that initially attracted the worker to the job in the first place). Thank you for pointing out additional aspects of burnout. It shows that the issue is complex and multifactorial.

Thank you for sharing your struggle, my heart goes out to you. I'm glad you were able to connect to the article. It seems like you're pretty clear on wanting to be done with nursing once and for all. I get it. I would be glad to speak with you about how coaching could help you create a way forward and through what you're currently dealing with. Your last paragraph is the main reason I wanted to focus on burnout in nursing. There is currently little to no help for healthcare workers dealing with this issue. I know countless nurses are dealing with this and it can leave you feeling helpless and disempowered to say the least. Remember you have more personal power than you realize. And, you can change a situation (at least how you see it/ mindset) or career if you want, it's not easy but can be done. I always say, "Life is short, don't waste it being miserable." I commend you on reaching out and wanting something better for your life.

Thank you for your insightful response. As you know, burnout is a far reaching and complex issue that can impact numerous areas. The real issues of the Healthcare system you reference are numerous as well and beyond the scope of my intent for this article (which was to give a basic definition of burnout). But I look forward to discussing them in a future article. I appreciate your input. And again, burnout is really an individual response to various stressors and mismatches in the workplace. I encourage others to draft their own definition which is tailor made for them. So for you, patients are not a source of burnout possibly because of your 30 year career; developing functional and effective methods of dealing with them. However, for a newbie who hasn't developed those skills, patients can be a central issue of them starting to burnout. It really is individual and doesn't always stick to an overall definition; there is room for flexibility. Thank you for sharing your valuable experience and your 30 years of commitment to nursing.

Well said. Fully agree with being compassionate to those who are burned out. Taking an intelligent approach like this is truly vital and can help those who are burnt.

Exactly. This is a classic example of the depersonalization/ cynicism aspect of burnout as defined by Christina Maslach Ph.D.

Ok awesome! Thanks so much for the link, look forward to reading her research.

A silly question. Right?As nurses we all can easily answer that one. I mean, come on. We've heard that word burnout so many times in our careers it seems to have lost its meaning. But seriously. Take a moment and write down how you define burnout. Did you have a difficult time defining it or did the definition easily flow from your pen? So, maybe there is more to my silly question. I'm guessing that if I read a few of your responses, I'd likely get many different answers. Ranging from an overall hatred of your job, to being totally fed up and wanting to quit, to being so exhausted you just want to sleep for 3 days straight, to truly hating your worthless manager. While there are elements of truth in those likely responses...the real definition might surprise you. Why so hard to define?I believe it's because we tend to focus on its effects- which can be different for each person, rather than a text book definition. This is what muddies up the water when trying to define it; when we add our feelings, emotions, experiences, and beliefs to our definition. These are very important, but can make giving a solid definition difficult. Learning how burnout is defined can be an important first step to addressing it and helping to limit its damage in our lives. It makes sense that you must know what you're dealing with before effective action can be taken. By definitionBurnout pioneer and researcher Christina Maslach Ph.D. defines it this way, In her book Burnout, The Cost of Caring (2003), Dr Maslach states, Emotional ExhaustionThis is about being very involved emotionally and overextending yourself and feeling overwhelmed by the demands of your patients. The natural response to this is emotional exhaustion. You just feel used up, chewed up, and just totally drained. Your reserves are tapped out. It's like you've given and given and given some more and have just run out of steam. Depersonalization/CynicismOnce the emotional exhaustion sets in, it makes sense you don't feel able to give of yourself any longer. It's not that you don't want to help- it's just that you can't climb one more mountain. So, what do you likely do? Start to distance yourself from others, but you're a nurse so this could be a big problem. Enter cynicism, that negative, callous, or very detached response to various aspects of your job. Does this ring a bell, "The patients are always so needy...I really don't care what happens...it's not my problem...they'll have to deal with it themselves...The patients always treat the nurses so horribly." The result of this thinking and attitude can lead to developing a poor opinion of our patients, expecting the worst from them, and even actively disliking them. At this point, we have a nurse who is physically/emotionally exhausted and unable to give another a drop of anything to anyone. And she has a very negative, detached response not only to her patients but to other staff as well. This isn't a pretty picture. Then, to add insult to injury, a third ugly aspect of burnout is brewing- a feeling of reduced personal accomplishment Reduced Personal AccomplishmentFeeling negative about others can naturally lead to feeling down on yourself. You might even feel guilty about how you've thought about your patients. Dr Maslach (2003) states, "They sense they are turning into the very type of person- cold and uncaring- that nobody, especially them, likes very much." Because of this, you might feel inadequate in your ability to relate to your patients which could result in declaring yourself a failure. What now?Burnout is a complex issue that we as healthcare providers deal with daily. While burnout happens in other industries, it seems to hit particularly hard for nurses based on the nature of our work. Remind yourself that being a nurse isn't easy, committing yourself to a lifetime of helping others never is, but the personal rewards can be great. And arming yourself with this knowledge can be an important initial step in combating burnout. I encourage everyone to take a serious look at how burnout might be negatively impacting your life. Realize this syndrome isn't limited to your clinical practice and over time can start to cause havoc in other areas of your life as well. Reference Maslach, Christina (2003). Burnout, The Cost of Caring, 1, 2-7.

Thank you so much for this valuable post. I think it's vital to either retain or get advice from a lawyer anytime your license/practice is called into question by the Board. This is definitely something you cannot mess around with.

It's still in process, hoping to get up and going within the next few months. Just knew I could have used someone like that while I was at the bedside. Plus so many nurse friends struggle with burnout and the like, just saw a huge need. Will keep you posted.

Hi BuckyBadger, actually I'm not a student. After 15 years at the bedside from being an open-heart nurse, to trauma/burn, and travelling for 8 years of those years doing assignments in 20 hospitals nationwide (US) I decided to step away from the bedside and take another path. I' ve always loved working with others and helping to improve their lives, so now I'm gathering the most up to date info on where nurses are currently struggling. My current plan is to be a Life Coach for nurses with a focus on burnout/ resilience. Hope this helps and clarifies why I asked the question I did. Thanks! Matt

Thanks cynmrn for your detailed response. I agree that staffing of course is a huge issue in hospitals and elsewhere. The lack of supplies or going on a hunt drives me crazy too; IV poles especially for some reason. My hunt frequently ends up attempting to open a supply closet, only to find it's blocked with 100 IV poles. Seriously? These are the frustrations that can really add up over time lead to burnout, and make me want to scream, "STOP THE INSANITY!!"

Thanks Davey for sharing. Your Psych Doors should have sensors for staff trays. Haha. Love the Cayce quote!

Thanks for the reply Sleepy RN, much appreciated. Or not being able to get into Pyxis supply in an emergency. Arrggg.

Ok, I'll gladly go. Thanks! First, having to take care of more patients than I believe I'm safely able to. Second, the constant alarms (IV pumps, tele monitors, call lights, telephones ringing... you get the picture). And third, doctors when you call them on their cell phone, seems like it's always breaking up when they're giving orders. Ok, here's a fourth, irate family members who are disrespectful. SMH.