Compassion Fatigue amongst Medical/Healthcare Providers.

Most often when we see a sick person who has to go through medical treatment, we feel either pity or sorry for them even without staying with them for a very long time, imagine the state of mind of those who need to stay with/take care of a loved one who is going through a severe medical condition. Often mistaken for burnout, is the case of Compassion Fatigue, which is a term used to describe the emotional, physical, and psychological impact of having to help other sick people, in a nutshell, compassion fatigue is a cumulative sense of dissatisfaction or fatigue.

The feeling of burnout could be a form of fatigue, but speaking about compassion fatigue, completely encompasses a more specific environment that is contributed due to a stressful environment or workplace. If we want to get more specific, we will bring it down to medical professionals like; nurses, first responders, therapists, doctors, or other professionals that need to provide adequate healthcare services.
Compassion fatigue is also known as vicarious or secondary trauma, experts who experience this syndrome usually find it difficult to provide patients with appropriate care and for them to perform duties appropriately. They usually feel very disappointed in their inability to help their patient out of suffering as much as they try.

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Compassion fatigue isn't something to be toiled with, it is a type of stress occurring from constant and regular contact with people who are possibly traumatized or having to go through an intense level of pain. It can create serious problems and undermine the physical and mental health of the caregiver negatively.

The signs of the sudden development of compassion fatigue are easy to figure out, but that is only when you know what exactly it is, that you are looking for. The symptoms to watch out for are;

Finding it difficult to concentrate or make sound decisions.
Feeling overwhelmed and often exhausted.
When there is a reduced feeling of sensitivity and empathy.
Having a feeling of helplessness when a patient is suffering.
Feeling overwhelmed by the demands at work.
Inability to enjoy previously enjoyable activities.
Feeling numb and disconnected emotionally.
Constantly blaming yourself for not helping your patient enough.
Having a reduced sense of accomplishment.
Inability to sleep properly, the feeling of nausea or dizziness.
Becoming extra vigilant and hyperactive.
Constant flashbacks of how a terrible event happened to a patient.

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Is it compassion fatigue or empathy fatigue?

These two terms are often used interchangeably, there are however certain models of compassion fatigue that do not agree with empathy fatigue.

Figley (2002a), expatiates on the need to empathize, according to the expert, there would be little or no room for compassion fatigue without empathy. Empathy is needed to work effectively and to show signs of care to patients, empathic concern, therefore, is the feeling or act of helping people who are suffering, it is through this empathic response towards our clients that we will relate with and understand the suffering of our patient, and help us share in their emotional responses. Compassion fatigue, on the other hand, is the consequence arising from the means of applying empathic response to our patients, suggesting a rise in the level of distress especially when we feel we should have done better for a particular patient or when there is no positive feedback coming forth.

After being stressed for a very long time, we could get pushed to a point of mental, physical, and emotional burnout, this burnout may occur as a result of other factors but compassion fatigue is usually a result of our inability as a medical expert to save/rescue someone from their suffering, keeping you preoccupied and extremely engaged with their plans. The symptoms of secondary trauma could appear closely similar to post-traumatic stress disorder.

Some of the other important factors that contribute to compassion fatigue are;

Traumatic memories: There are memories that could trigger a caregiver's experience, like doing everything you can to ensure you save the life of a patient and after the patient appears to be responding to treatment, suddenly loses his life another example is a therapist who has been speaking/taking care of a patient for some time, then she wakes up the following morning to find out the patient committed suicide.
Long-time exposure: Helping people in pain for a long time sometimes without taking a break or going on that much-needed holiday.
Disruption with activities: Every form of activity that makes it impossible for you to go around your daily schedule or routine.

Treating compassion fatigue may take time, so it is better to prevent it from happening before it does happen, the possibility of doing this lies in following these strategies;

Taking constant vacations.
Engage in constant exercises.
Look out for opportunities to reduce stressful workloads.
Find time to meditate.
Engage in personal therapy.
Learn about the symptoms and immediately understand that you are gradually coming to a victim.

If you are already going through compassion fatigue, you can still heal and become a better and stronger caregiver again, this can be achievable by;