Burnout in Nursing

Burnout. It’s a word healthcare professionals, especially nurses, have heard over the last several years. Although most people may have various experiences or understandings of burnout, it’s essential that we define what it is and how to overcome it.

According to the World Health Organization, burnout can be defined as a syndrome caused by chronic workplace stress that isn’t being managed successfully. They also cite burnout as a workplace phenomenon, not a medical condition.

It’s important to address burnout so that we can recognize it in ourselves and those around us and find ways to cope and work through the factors contributing to burnout. If left unresolved, burnout can impact staff turnover, decrease job satisfaction, and impact patient care.

This blog post aims to define burnout, identify signs, explain why it’s prevalent in nursing, and give tips to avoid it.

Understanding Burnout

The factors contributing to burnout in nursing are vast and ever-evolving. Since the pandemic, healthcare professionals have experienced enormous shifts in workload, patient acuity, staff turnover, and heightened awareness of health by the public related to medical care. As a result, burnout has become more prominent among nursing staff. Some factors contributing to burnout include long work hours, the physical and mental demands of the job, as well as organizational aspects.

Why it’s prevalent in nursing

Extended hours: In hospital settings, nurses typically work 12 hours. Since patients require 24/7 care, nurses can work the day shift or night shift, and in certain areas, such as the emergency department, they may even work flex hours, such as 11a-11p or 3p-3a.
Physical and mental toil of the job: Night shift work in any field has been known to be demanding on the body. It can disrupt our circadian rhythms or our body’s internal processes to regulate our sleep-wake cycles. According to the Centers for Disease Control, or CDC, studies have shown that those who work the night shift for extended periods (years and decades) face more health challenges, including increased risk of heart disease and cancer.
Let’s face it. Working 12 hours can be very demanding. And yes, most nurses only work three 12-hour shifts per week, but the type of work we do in those 12 hours can make it even more demanding. During a 12-hour shift, nurses stand on our feet for long periods; we lift, turn, and ambulate our patients and are exposed to infectious diseases and pathogens. In addition, we must constantly use our critical thinking to make life-saving decisions and judgments about our patients consistently.
Patient-to-nurse ratios: Nurse-to-patient ratios have been a constant source of discussion for nurses. In specific critical care settings such as the intensive care unit (ICU), nurses have a 2:1 ratio, meaning each nurse will have two patients to care for. Other areas, such as the emergency department, could have 3-4 patients for every nurse, with departments such as med surg having upwards of 5 to 6 patients per nurse. If the department is short-staffed, these nurse-to-patient ratios could increase, adding additional work demands to nurses.
The acuity of patients: Patients have varying degrees of acuity or the level of care needed to treat them. With that being said, patients with higher acuities, or those who are much more critical, can require more time, attention, and critical thinking on behalf of the nurse, which can contribute to increased stress and anxiety.

Overall stress of the job: It’s no secret that healthcare can be a very stressful environment to work in. There are constant demands of your time and energy that are required to treat sick patients. And the stakes are very high because we are dealing with the health and well-being of another human being. Those factors, coupled with the very present demands to complete patient charting, provide care that meets and exceeds quality metrics for the organization, and ensure we provide the safest care possible, can sometimes create added layers of pressure and stress to nurses.

Signs of Burnout

Physical: There can be many physical signs of burnout, including increased blood pressure and heart rate, palpitations, headaches, digestion issues, and insomnia. These symptoms can be related to the “fight or flight response” or the body’s physical response to perceived threats and dangers.

Mental & emotional: Burnout can also affect your mental and emotional well-being. Emotional and mental signs of burnout can include irritability, lack of motivation, exhaustion, and feeling depressed.

How to avoid burnout

Recognize the signs and act: Once you recognize that you or someone you know could be experiencing burnout, it’s essential to begin taking the proper steps to ease your symptoms and work to resolve feelings of burnout. Acknowledging that you are experiencing burnout is the first step to regaining control of your life and happiness.
Practice self-care: Self-care is a great way to prioritize yourself by focusing on the activities that bring you joy. In simple terms, self-care is the intentional practice of taking care of yourself in a way that allows you to stay physically and mentally well. Self-care can take many forms, including journaling, reading, engaging in creative hobbies, and spending time with close family and friends.
Prioritize physical and mental well-being: Burnout can take a toll on your psychological and physical well-being. To combat the adverse effects of burnout, it’s important to keep our minds and bodies healthy. Ways to prioritize your physical health include regular exercise, proper diet and nutrition,and healthy sleeping patterns. For those of you who work night shifts, to avoid significant disruptions in your sleep, opt for black-out curtains, keep your room comfortable for rest, and try to reduce distractions once you are ready for bed.
Therapy & counseling: Seeking out the help of a licensed professional to who you can speak is an excellent solution if you suffer from burnout and its mental effects. Having a therapist or counsel you can confide in can provide an unbiased assessment of your situation and valuable tools and exercises you can practice when feeling stressed or overwhelmed.
Build a supportive work environment: Find a village within your work community. These can be colleagues in your department or outside of it with whom you can be vulnerable. Engage with them, talk about your work stresses, and share how it impacts your physical, mental, and well-being. Having a community of work friends who you can share with not only prevents you from bottling your emotions but also offers you the opportunity to learn more relaxation methods and coping methods. Plan outings and events you all can do on your off days so that you can find ways to focus on other occasions besides “work talk.”
Work-life balance: Don’t take on more than you can chew. I know signing up for one more shift during the week can be tempting to make extra money, but consider the trade-off of losing one of your off days. One way to avoid the exhaustion that comes with burnout is to prioritize maintaining healthy boundaries between work and your personal life.

Remember, self-care is a great way to take care of yourself before caring for the safety and well-being of others. If you’ve never practiced self-care or want to learn more about its benefits, check out Nursehub’s Sef Care course. This course includes information about why prioritizing self-care is essential, strategies to support your self-care habits, and how to set goals for your self-care practice. If you’re interested in learning more about NurseHub’s Self-Care Course, make sure to find out more details here

Burnout may sometimes be considered an unavoidable result of specific work environments, especially in healthcare. Burnout can occur over time because of environmental factors related to one’s work. Now that you know this, you’ll be able to understand better what burnout is, how it is caused, and ways to mitigate its effects. It’s crucial to recognize when we feel overwhelmed, easily stressed, or anxious to avoid or reduce the impact of burnout.

To learn more about this and other topics for nurses and nursing students, follow us on Instagram and Tiktok.

Also, make sure you join our Nursing 101 Facebook group. Benefits of this nursing student group include:

Joining a community of future nurses in similar positions as you.
You can ask questions about nursing school.
Many nursing students in this group also share information about stress management, study habits, and how to learn in a fast-paced environment.