Compassion Fatigue Essay
Consequences Compassion fatigue consequences negatively affect nurses through staff turnover due to decreased job satisfaction. Additionally, compassion fatigue causes nurses to feel anger, anxiety self-doubt, depression, medical errors, exhaustion physically, and emotionally. Furthermore, negative work environments, brings overworked nurses, that then turns into decreased patient satisfaction scores, and ultimately causes limited reimbursement financial dependence. Lack of leadership or management support contributes to compassion fatigue due to inadequate open communication, resources, and awareness (Kelly, 2015; Hunsaker, 2015; Sacco, 2015; Lachman, 2016).
Criteria
The concept of compassion fatigue is an abstract concept and nurses …show more content…
The concept of compassion fatigue in acute care nurses is supported by Tsai’s Theory of Caregiver Stress. McEwen and Wills (2014) explains, the purpose of the Theory of Caregiver Stress is to predict stress and the effects of stress on caregivers. To determine stress and its outcomes, demographic characteristics, burden in caregiving, stressful life events, and social support and social roles are evaluated (Source?).
The research studies reviewing compassion fatigue were very similar in the use of a cross sectional quantitative survey study to gather data. It was also consistently reported that in addition to the conclusions discussed, additional research and investigation is still needed to corroborate the results.
In reviewing the concept of compassion fatigue, it was easy to recognize that similar instruments and tools are used in the study of this concept. The Professional Quality of Life Scale (ProQOL) is a 30 item tool using the Likert scale for three subcategories; compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue and burnout. The ProQOL was developed by Stamm and Figley and has been used in 667 research studies (“Professional Quality,” 2016). This tool was consistently used independently and in conjunction with other instruments. A demographical behavioral instrument, The Penn Inventory, supported several studies
Criteria
The concept of compassion fatigue is an abstract concept and nurses …show more content…
The concept of compassion fatigue in acute care nurses is supported by Tsai’s Theory of Caregiver Stress. McEwen and Wills (2014) explains, the purpose of the Theory of Caregiver Stress is to predict stress and the effects of stress on caregivers. To determine stress and its outcomes, demographic characteristics, burden in caregiving, stressful life events, and social support and social roles are evaluated (Source?).
The research studies reviewing compassion fatigue were very similar in the use of a cross sectional quantitative survey study to gather data. It was also consistently reported that in addition to the conclusions discussed, additional research and investigation is still needed to corroborate the results.
In reviewing the concept of compassion fatigue, it was easy to recognize that similar instruments and tools are used in the study of this concept. The Professional Quality of Life Scale (ProQOL) is a 30 item tool using the Likert scale for three subcategories; compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue and burnout. The ProQOL was developed by Stamm and Figley and has been used in 667 research studies (“Professional Quality,” 2016). This tool was consistently used independently and in conjunction with other instruments. A demographical behavioral instrument, The Penn Inventory, supported several studies