(119) Burnout in Critical Care Units: Evidence-Based Strategies to Support Healthy High Performance

Introduction: Nearly 51% of critical care physicians and 38% of ICU nurses experience burnout. Critical care teams operate and manage a unique set of stressors including high workload, short staffing, time pressure, role conflict, inability to change work conditions, moral distress, palliative and terminal patient care, helplessness, and bereavement. This study focuses on strategies that can be implemented by health administrators to prevent burnout within critical care units.

Methods: Practice recommendations are derived from the analysis of a survey including scientifically validated measures on 722 healthcare workers as well as scientific expert opinion collected from subject-matter-experts. Participants responded to scientifically validated survey questions regarding compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, team psychological safety, supervisor support, peer support, moral distress, absenteeism, presenteeism, turnover intention, and patient safety culture.

Results: In terms of workplace policies, our results suggest providing healthcare workers with a psychologically safe work environment that empowers them to voice their opinions about the stress factors that can negatively influence the delivery and quality of care without the fear of any repercussions. Additionally, offering specialized training for ICU work for nursing staff, limiting extra-duty work responsibilities, and conducting accurate workforce planning based on objective measures of workload can be effective strategies in preventing burnout. In terms of the programs, our results indicate a clear need for more mental health resources, such as regular wellness check-ins, training on self-care, stress management, managing conflicts, and leadership training. Also, providing mentorship programs to students and staff in their early career, and peer support programs for vulnerable groups can potentially increase their sense of professional efficacy and reduce their level of emotional exhaustion.

Conclusions: This study is focused on providing a guideline to develop workplace wellness initiatives that can protect the well-being of physicians and nursing staff working in critical care units.