A Nurse’s Story

The team of nurses that Tilda Shalof found herself working with in the intensive care unit (ICU) of a big-city hospital was known as "Laura's Line." They were a bit wild: smart, funny, disrespectful of authority, but also... read more

A Nurse’s Story

Something for the Pain: Compassion and Burnout in the ER

In this eye-opening account of life in the ER, Paul Austin recalls how the daily grind of long, erratic shifts and endless hordes of patients with sad stories sent him down a path of bitterness and cynicism. Gritty, powerful,... read more

Something for the Pain: Compassion and Burnout in the ER

Burnout How Can We Improve

The risk of burnout in intensive care is high, there is a great need to look after ourselves and each other to enable us to effectively care for our patients and to be part of not only an effective team but also an enjoyable... read more

Burnout How Can We Improve

Most Physicians Disenchanted With Their Profession

Seven out of ten physicians would not recommend their profession to their children or other family members, and more than half are thinking about retiring within the next five years, including one-third of those under the... read more

Most Physicians Disenchanted With Their Profession

Burnout in Intensive Care: How Can We Improve?

The risk of burnout in intensive care is high, there is a great need to look after ourselves and each other to enable us to effectively care for our patients and to be part of not only an effective team but also an enjoyable... read more

Burnout in Intensive Care: How Can We Improve?

Why Doctors Hate Their Computers

Something's gone terribly wrong. Doctors are among the most technology-avid people in society; computerization has simplified tasks in many industries. Yet somehow we've reached a point where people in the medical profession... read more

When health professionals have empathy, patients aren’t the only ones who benefit

What do doctors and religious leaders have in common? At least a couple of big things: individuals in both professions engage with people at some of the most critical moments in their lives and require a high degree of empathy... read more

When health professionals have empathy, patients aren’t the only ones who benefit

For Doctors, Delving Deeper as a Way to Avoid Burnout

The consequences of burning out — a phenomenon that rises linearly as a doctor matures, until it finally dies down at about 60 — can be hard to measure. Some solutions to fixing burnout are therefore pragmatic. They involve... read more

For Doctors, Delving Deeper as a Way to Avoid Burnout

Preventing Burnout and Compassion Fatigue

Burnout and compassion fatigue can happen to any healthcare professional, and it can have a negative impact on patients and even your larger nursing career. Fortunately it's very preventable, as our guest this week will attest... read more

Preventing Burnout and Compassion Fatigue

Physician Well-Being: The Reciprocity of Efficiency, Resilience, Wellness Culture

The quality and safety of patient care, and indeed the very vitality of our health care systems, depend heavily on high-functioning physicians. Yet recent data have revealed an extraordinarily high - and increasing - prevalence... read more

Physician Well-Being: The Reciprocity of Efficiency, Resilience, Wellness Culture

Doctors’ Mental Health at Tipping Point

Patients rely on doctors to look after their mental health but is enough being done to help the doctors when they are the ones with problems? There are concerns that some medical professionals in England are unable to get... read more

Doctors’ Mental Health at Tipping Point

Finding Out What Matters to Our Patients

Do you spend time finding out what the "why" is for your patient? Have you considered it’s not what is the matter with the patient but what matters to the patient? What the patient thinks their purpose is? Or at the very... read more

Finding Out What Matters to Our Patients

Flexible Versus Restrictive Visiting Policies in ICUs

Flexible ICU visiting hours have the potential to reduce delirium and anxiety symptoms among patients and to improve family members' satisfaction. However, they may be associated with an increased risk of burnout among ICU... read more

Flexible Versus Restrictive Visiting Policies in ICUs

Study examines risks of physician burnout

Medical errors contribute to an estimated 100,000 to 200,000 deaths per year, according to the Institute of Medicine. Burnout — defined as emotional exhaustion or depersonalization — occurs in more than half of doctors,... read more

Study examines risks of physician burnout

The Real Doctor Will See You Shortly: A Physician’s First Year

In medical school, Matt McCarthy dreamed of being a different kind of doctor—the sort of mythical, unflappable physician who could reach unreachable patients. But when a new admission to the critical care unit almost died... read more

The Real Doctor Will See You Shortly: A Physician’s First Year

Drowned: Nurses Under Water

Nurses are expensive. We are the largest professional workforce in healthcare, and with over 3.1 million professional nurses in the country, it appears that we are large in number but small as a priority. Nurses are overworked.... read more

Drowned: Nurses Under Water

Creating a “Manageable Cockpit” for Clinicians

For many clinicians, the work of health care has become undoable. The "cockpit" where physicians and other health professionals work now consists of a cacophony of warning alerts, pop-up messages, mandatory tick boxes, a... read more

Creating a “Manageable Cockpit” for Clinicians

A Qualitative Study Exploring Moral Distress in the ICU Team

This study identified the ways in which moral distress manifests across critical care disciplines in different ICU environments. Our results have potential implications for patient care. First, when clinicians alter the content... read more

A Qualitative Study Exploring Moral Distress in the ICU Team

The Prevalence of Compassion Fatigue and Burnout among Healthcare Professionals in ICUs

The true prevalence of burnout, compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress and vicarious trauma in ICU healthcare professionals remains open for discussion. A thorough exploration of emotional distress in relation to... read more

The Prevalence of Compassion Fatigue and Burnout among Healthcare Professionals in ICUs

Hidden Curricula, Ethics, and Professionalism: Optimizing Clinical Learning Environments in Becoming and Being a Physician

The educational and social milieu of medical learning environments is a complex system of influences. Role models across peer relationships and the hierarchy of medicine contribute to the formation of professional identity,... read more

Hidden Curricula, Ethics, and Professionalism: Optimizing Clinical Learning Environments in Becoming and Being a Physician

Why Do Nurses Quit?

Estimates are that up to 30-50% of nurses leave their position or quit nursing altogether in the first year. What drives nurses away? Some new grads do not survive the shock. Nursing school is insufficient preparation for... read more

Why Do Nurses Quit?