How Mental Health Nurses Report Their Compassion Fatigue and Compassion Satisfaction: A Cross-Sectional Study and the Implications for Healthcare Leaders

Abstract

Compassion fatigue is the cost of caring for others in emotional pain where the helping professional absorbs the trauma of those they help and cannot detach emotionally at the end of the day. Stressful and perceived unsupportive work environments may leave the caregiver at a heightened risk for compassion fatigue. To study the level of compassion fatigue and compassion satisfaction experienced by mental health nurses. A descriptive, cross-sectional, electronic survey design was utilized. The Professional Quality of Life Scale-5 was used. The study was conducted at a large, urban hospital that exclusively treats patients with mental health and addiction issues located in Ontario, Canada. The sample included all nurses who were listed on the hospital’s Email list. All nurses who are displayed on this list are mental health nurses. Analyses were conducted to assess for differences between the characteristics and the subscales of professional quality of life. One hundred and forty-eight mental health nurses completed a questionnaire. The response rate was 21%. Seventy-six percent reported moderate levels of burnout, 59% reported moderate levels of secondary traumatic stress, and 21% reported high levels of compassion satisfaction. Predictors were seen for the characteristics of gender, ethnicity, marital status, area, exposure to violence and support felt. Compassion fatigue has clear implications. Organizations willing to invest in reducing it, have the potential to improve patient outcomes and the well-being of nurses. The majority of mental health nurses reported moderate levels for each of the subscales.

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the following individuals for their support of this study: Dionne Sinclair, Dr. Rola Moghabghab, Sherida Chambers, Frances Abela-Dimech, and Jane Patterson. We also wish to thank Marcos Sanches (expert statistician) who verified the statistics before the submission of this manuscript. Finally, we wish to dedicate this article to all mental health nurses for their ongoing perseverance and resolve, despite the adversity and challenges that they face.

Author contributions

Study design, formulation of research questions, data collection: DM and LC; data analysis: DM, LC, and MS; manuscript writing and manuscript revisions: DM and LC.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health Professional Practice Office.