Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

7 ways to combat compassion fatigue

Jenny Hartsock, MD
Physician
August 17, 2017
Share
Tweet
Share

This is the patient’s eight admission over the course of two weeks. The patient is a heroin abuser and has bacteremia and endocarditis. Their heart valve is failing and they are in and out of congestive heart failure. Every day, dozens of medical professionals converge on the patient to give treatment and advice. And every day after hearing that advice, the patient leaves the hospital against medical advice and goes to use IV drugs. They wind up back in the hospital out of fear or panic, or they are brought back in after overdosing by the police. The cycle continues.

In this common daily scenario, it is very easy as a provider to lose hope. We are doing our absolute best to treat patients who, many times, do not want or refuse our help. In the throws of their addiction, these patients are focused only on the next high —regardless if that costs them their lives.

So at the bedside, how do you maintain your own well being and sanity? At our core, we all went into this field to help people. Drug addiction is a challenging disease, but it is a disease. Not a moral failing — not a choice. Treating addiction just as we would any other disease is the first step in the process. It can be very hard to separate our emotions and personal biases from our work with these patients, but we must. Focusing on what is best for that patient in that moment is the only thing that matters.

Easier said than done, right? Compassion fatigue and burnout are real issues at our jobs. We are not going to save every patient, people are going to die. All we can do is our best to treat each patient as an individual with kindness and compassion, as well as excellent medical care. And at the end of the day, that’s it.

Don’t take the stress of treating patients home with you, leave it at the door and know you did everything you could. In order for us to remain excellent providers and not flame out, we need to prioritize our own mental and emotional health.

You do not want to let feelings of overwhelming stress keep building up unchecked. So, what can you do?

1. Talk it out with your colleagues.
2. Delegate — ask for help from your colleagues when you need it.
3. Practice meditation and self reflection.
4. Do some yoga and exercise — do whatever you love doing that helps you cope with the stress of this job.
5. Take time off when you need it.
6. Be OK with saying “no.”
7. Get more involved — sometimes being part of the solution, in this case like volunteering at a drug rehab center or helping improve access to addiction resources, can restore the meaning to your daily work.

But above all, know that there are so many of us out there right now going through the same thing — if we are open and honest about our struggles as providers we can get through them together.

Jenny Hartsock is a hospitalist.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

Doctors: Are you employees, business owners or entrepreneurs?

August 17, 2017 Kevin 0
…
Next

Doctors: Don't emotionally detach

August 18, 2017 Kevin 1
…

Tagged as: Cardiology, Hospital-Based Medicine, Infectious Disease, Primary Care

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Doctors: Are you employees, business owners or entrepreneurs?
Next Post >
Doctors: Don't emotionally detach

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Jenny Hartsock, MD

  • We are all out of ideas for how to convince you to get vaccinated

    Jenny Hartsock, MD
  • Physicians who work themselves into the ground have nothing to be proud of

    Jenny Hartsock, MD
  • We are losing the COVID-19 war. Here’s how we can turn the tide.

    Jenny Hartsock, MD

Related Posts

  • The benefits of compassion always outweigh its risks

    Nidhi Desai
  • When you’re a physician, you’re a detective

    Lauren Joseph
  • How to combat imposter syndrome in medical school

    Margaret Hogan Smoot
  • A physician’s addiction to social media

    Amanda Xi, MD
  • Patients alone cannot combat high health care prices

    Peter Ubel, MD
  • Sometimes an ounce of compassion feels like a waterfall

    Diana Robinson

More in Physician

  • How doctors took back control from hospital executives

    Gene Uzawa Dorio, MD
  • How art and science fueled one woman’s path to medicine

    Amy Avakian, MD
  • In a fractured world, Brian Wilson’s message still heals

    Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA
  • Why being a physician mom is harder than anyone admits

    Cynthia Chen-Joea, DO, MPH
  • Removing vaccine advisers could jeopardize lives

    J. Leonard Lichtenfeld, MD
  • Why would any physician believe that the practice of medicine will become less abusive for them in the future?

    Curtis G. Graham, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How medical culture hides burnout in plain sight

      Marco Benítez | Conditions
    • How the 10th Apple Effect is stealing your joy in medicine

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • Why flashy AI tools won’t fix health care without real infrastructure

      David Carmouche, MD | Tech
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • The broken health care system doesn’t have to break you

      Jessie Mahoney, MD | Physician
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • Why male fertility needs to be part of every health conversation

      Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian | Conditions
    • Why health care must adapt to meet the needs of older adults with disabilities

      Lynn A. Schaefer, PhD | Conditions
    • How doctors took back control from hospital executives

      Gene Uzawa Dorio, MD | Physician
    • Improving patient encounters: time-saving strategies for physicians [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How art and science fueled one woman’s path to medicine

      Amy Avakian, MD | Physician
    • In a fractured world, Brian Wilson’s message still heals

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

Leave a Comment

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How medical culture hides burnout in plain sight

      Marco Benítez | Conditions
    • How the 10th Apple Effect is stealing your joy in medicine

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • Why flashy AI tools won’t fix health care without real infrastructure

      David Carmouche, MD | Tech
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • The broken health care system doesn’t have to break you

      Jessie Mahoney, MD | Physician
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • Why male fertility needs to be part of every health conversation

      Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian | Conditions
    • Why health care must adapt to meet the needs of older adults with disabilities

      Lynn A. Schaefer, PhD | Conditions
    • How doctors took back control from hospital executives

      Gene Uzawa Dorio, MD | Physician
    • Improving patient encounters: time-saving strategies for physicians [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How art and science fueled one woman’s path to medicine

      Amy Avakian, MD | Physician
    • In a fractured world, Brian Wilson’s message still heals

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Leave a Comment

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...