Nurse burnout is a common condition in healthcare environments caused by high stress. Stressors include constant long shifts, poor work-life balance, and lack of administrative support. If you are experiencing nurse burnout, it is essential that you seek support promptly to reduce long-term effects.
Understanding Nurse Burnout: Causes, Symptoms, and Solutions
Burnout and fatigue among healthcare professionals can lead to errors in medication dosages and mistakes during procedures. Nurse burnout is becoming more common because of staffing shortages and other factors, and nurses must learn how to take care of themselves and keep pace with this rewarding profession.
Felician University’s Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program provides a high-quality education for individuals with non-nursing bachelor’s degrees or 60 non-nursing college credits. In the ABSN program, you can earn a nursing degree in as few as 16 months. Valuable nursing theory courses, hands-on labs, and clinical rotations ensure that you are well prepared to take the next step in your nursing career.
It is important to remember that despite its challenges, nursing is a highly rewarding career with many benefits. Burnout is a risk across all occupations, not only nursing, and it is preventable and treatable. By learning how to recognize the signs of burnout and the steps to mitigate it, you can prepare yourself for a long, fulfilling career as a nurse.
What Is Nurse Burnout?
All professionals can experience general workplace burnout, but nurse burnout is a condition characterized by exhaustion and physical, emotional, and mental stress common in nursing and healthcare workplaces. It is preventable and treatable when nurses learn to recognize the signs and understand how to manage it effectively.
What Happens if You Experience Nurse Burnout?
Burnout is unlikely to resolve on its own if it is ignored or its importance is downplayed. Patients and hospitals feel the effects, such as lower patient and job satisfaction and reduced quality of patient care. It is crucial to educate nurses on the importance of avoiding burnout in nursing and ways to prevent it.
Common Causes of Nurse Burnout
While nursing is full of tangible and emotional rewards, it is demanding. It is important to remember that nurse burnout is caused by the stress of the environment, not by a person’s character. Here are a few common causes of burnout in nursing:
- Constant long shifts
- Poor work-life balance
- High patient loads
- Working in understaffed hospitals
- Lack of administrative support
- Significant exposure to trauma and loss
- Heavy emotional strain of patient care
Burnout is not inevitable. A combination of the causes mentioned above may be present in a healthcare workplace; however, this does not mean that these factors cause burnout or that they are permanent. It is important to understand burnout’s potential causes so nurses can take steps to address it if they experience it.
Are you wondering what a nurse’s shift, duties, and specialties would look like?
Recognizing the Signs of Burnout in Nursing
How do you know if you are experiencing nursing burnout? You should periodically evaluate yourself and determine whether you are experiencing any signs. If you are, seek help and support immediately.
Physical burnout symptoms include fatigue, headaches, and sleep disturbances. You may also experience emotional symptoms, such as anxiety, irritability, and detachment. Behavioral changes include reduced performance, effectiveness, and absenteeism. All of these symptoms negatively affect your relationships with your team and the standard of patient care you deliver.
Strategies to Prevent and Manage Nurse Burnout
Nurses can experience burnout at any point in their career; it is not a reflection of their skills or suitability for the career. What steps should you take to avoid it? How do you help yourself if you feel you are experiencing symptoms? The following strategies help prevent feelings of burnout and aid in its treatment so that nurses can return to work with renewed passion.
Sufficient sleep is essential for the body to recover each day. Feeling rested improves your interactions with patients and coworkers. Eat healthy, nourishing foods that will keep your body fueled throughout your long shifts, and implement self-care practices. Practice mindfulness through breathing exercises and remain aware of your body’s needs.
You should also use effective time management techniques such as prioritizing important tasks and events, creating to-do lists, and keeping a planner. Create boundaries to protect your work–life balance by deciding which activities are most important first, then adding extra, less-important activities later.
If you experience nurse burnout, seek professional counseling. This will help you avoid any long-term negative effects from burnout symptoms. Seek encouragement and support from your peers, who will help you manage your workload and create a positive workplace environment.
You can also help foster a positive work environment and change it for the better. You can lead with compassion for each individual you work with, communicate clearly in all situations, and offer encouragement and support to your peers.
Creating a Culture of Wellness in Nursing
Healthcare leadership also plays a role in reducing burnout. Leaders can implement technology systems or initiatives to help lift the burden from nurses, provide professional development opportunities and encourage mentorship, and ensure open communication between all healthcare workers. By recognizing and appreciating hardworking nurses and healthcare professionals, leadership can help promote a culture of wellness.
Resources for Nurses Experiencing Burnout
If you think you are experiencing nurse burnout or want to prevent it, consider taking advantage of the following resources.
You can call the Mental Health Hotline to connect with professional, trained individuals who will support you. If you are looking for nursing-specific support, the Nurse Well-Being Program specifically supports nurses experiencing stress. Additionally, consider seeking support from local nurse support groups or leaning on peers, mentors, and family members.
If you are feeling burnt out, consider pursuing more education and training. Improving your skills may help you feel less overwhelmed and build confidence in your abilities, giving you more satisfaction in your job.
Final Thoughts on Combating Burnout in Nursing
Nurse burnout can affect all nurses around the globe; it should not be considered a personal failure but should be taken seriously. If you are experiencing fatigue, know that you are not alone. Reach out to support groups, join mentorship opportunities, practice self-care, and seek support.
If you are beginning your nursing career, ensure that you use nursing burnout prevention strategies, including maintaining a healthy work–life balance, resting enough, and practicing mindfulness. Create a healthy, strong community and support group of mentors, instructors, peers, friends, and family to guide you throughout your nursing career.
Nursing is a rewarding career that allows you to make a meaningful impact. Remember why you felt called to this profession. Although it is challenging at times, nursing is a worthy career. Individuals in any job can feel burnout. Knowing how to recognize and treat it will help you appreciate the benefits of nursing and allow you to keep working a job you love.
Explore why nursing is a good career and is worth the effort.
Start Your Nursing Journey With Felician University ABSN
At Felician University, you will have a strong community of counselors, instructors, and peers who will support you while you earn your nursing degree and throughout your career. By gaining a strong foundation with comprehensive coursework, skills, and simulation nursing labs, and clinical rotations, you will be well prepared to take the next step into the nursing field.
We offer two program types in New Jersey: a hybrid program that combines online learning with in-person labs and clinicals in Parsippany, and an entirely on-ground program in Rutherford. Contact us to learn more about Felician University’s ABSN program.