The Gifts of Giving: Forms of Compassion Fatigue and Alternative Outcomes for Helpers
Friday August 30, 2019
9:00am - 12:15pm
- 3 NBCC approved credit hours
- 3 hours NCSAPPB approved substance use specific (SS) and psychopathology (PSY)
We all know burnout…probably a bit too familiarly. What we may not know are its many faces, or the numerous factors contributing to its onset. Caregiving professionals are vulnerable to a spectrum of burnout syndromes including vicarious traumatization, compassion fatigue, and secondary traumatic stress. Outcomes can be pretty dire: substance use, PTSD, impairment, stigma, loss of career, isolation, unethical decision-making, and hopelessness.
Mental health professionals could be regarded as an underserved population, if we weren’t so busy caring for highly vulnerable people! Considering the lack of research and prevention resources available, and the low priority employers sometimes place on staff wellness, the potential for suffering is great among human service professionals.
When serving individuals who have addictions, watching one more relapse can be disheartening. It can make us feel like our work is going nowhere. It’s hard to show up for clients and families in their most vulnerable state, when we often do not get to see how the story ends.
Yet we are resilient and powerful! Our experience of the helping professions doesn’t have to be this way. This talk will outline symptoms of four burnout syndromes, provide reflection time with prompts for self-exploration, and a collaborative brainstorm session to apply as individuals and organizations. Finally, a discussion of compassion satisfaction and post-traumatic growth will foster hope, positivity, and a sense of community. Come take some space for yourself and the workplaces that make your amazing work possible.
The objectives of this workshop:
- Practitioners will gain knowledge of four types of caregiver burnout.
- Practitioners will increase awareness of burnout syndromes in themselves, their coworkers, and the organizations in which they work.
- Practitioners will collaborate with colleagues to innovate ideas for individual and organizational caretaking.
- Practitioners will reconnect to their professional motivations and empowerment to enact positive initiatives in the workplace.
Snacks, coffee, tea, and water served!
We look forward to seeing you there!
Presented by Ginelle Krummey, MA, LPCA, NCC