Compassion, Compassion Fatigue, and Burnout: Key Insights for Oncology Professionals

Abstract

When cancer care clinicians become stressed, sad, isolated—and unaware of this—they are placing themselves at risk for burnout and their patients at risk for suboptimal care. Despite their best intentions, clinicians can sink from a healthy work state of compassion, empathy, and well-being into compassion fatigue and burnout. Lessons from first responders demonstrate the importance for clinicians to recognize the warning signs of compassion and fatigue and burnout, as this recognition can enable them to take action towards prevention and/or recovery. The recognition of these issues as a threat to clinician performance has outstripped the development of evidence-based interventions, but interventions tested to date are effective, feasible, and scalable. These interventions could be incorporated systematically into cancer care.