Compassion Fatigue

Course overview

Compassion fatigue is caused by the emotional demands of constant exposure to human suffering, creating a desensitization to the suffering of others. Compassion fatigue as one of the most concerning issues facing nurses today. It contributes to job dissatisfaction, decreased productivity, job burnout which frequently leads to turnover, and decreased quality of care. Due to the intensity in which long-term care workers are caring for residents, they are at risk for developing compassion fatigue. This educational activity on compassion fatigue will help nurses learn individual and organizational practices that promote greater self-care to reduce the impacts of this issue.