How Healthcare Leaders Can Proactively Identify and Address Employee Burnout
The burnout, stress and mental taxation experienced by healthcare workers has been at the forefront of the profession since the early days of the pandemic. In fact, nearly half of healthcare workers reported feeling burned out in 2022, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 86% of clinicians said they felt overworked — so much so, that the vast majority are considering complete career changes.
From staffing shortages to supply chain issues, scheduling blunders and workplace violence, the very system we all lean on for our own well-being is deteriorating that of healthcare workers.
It is on healthcare leaders to identify and address employee burnout before it results in a deeper crisis. By being proactive in fully understanding what burnout is and what it looks like, leaders can mitigate serious problems before they become irreparable.
The Negative Implications of Burnout
The implications of burnout are well-documented by the CDC and elsewhere, and they are severe. For employees themselves, burnout results in mental health challenges like anxiety and depression. It causes distrust at work and hinders productivity. Physically, persistent burnout leads to fatigue, irritability, sleep issues and lower immune health. It can also result in chronic issues that can linger long after the employee leaves the environment that caused the burnout.
For healthcare organizations, these consequences mean poor employee retention, low morale and less-than patient experiences. When our people are mentally and physically drained, how can we expect them to go above-and-beyond for their patients?
How Healthcare Leaders Can Pinpoint Signs of Burnout Sooner
While burnout affects everyone differently, it’s on leaders to identify and address its signs. The mental and emotional distress and the physical symptoms can be seen and addressed earlier if leaders use the following tactics:
Know Your People: As a leader, when you have a genuine understanding of those you serve, you can often tell when something is off with them. Further, having quality relationships with your employees allows you to check in on them, and it empowers your people to come to you when they’re overwhelmed. For non-direct reports, surveys and skip-level meetings can help you gauge the overall sentiment of your workforce.
Prioritize Well-Being: As a healthcare executive, your workload and demands look different than those of the frontline workers in your organization. Yet, as a leader, your actions are constantly monitored by those around you. If you show vulnerability, advocate for using time off, ask for help and advice, and embody the traits of healthy work-life balance, it helps shape a workplace culture that does, too.
Show Appreciation: When we’re feeling overworked, we’re often also feeling underappreciated. Remember to value those who show up to work each day. Take a lap around the hospital and thank employees for their hard work. Meet with middle-level managers to acknowledge their commitment. Recognize a job well done when you see one. High employee engagement results in happier employees and lower turnover rates.
Establish Workplace Support Systems: Implement clear processes that employees can follow to report workplace issues and seek assistance, and then continually talk about them. Evaluate their ease of use and employees’ understanding of what’s available to them to ensure workers know support is there if they need it.
Foster Connection: From regular all-company meetings to keep employees aware of news and updates to supplying lunch for departments, creating comfortable, inviting break areas, and more, loneliness and isolation are contributors to burnout. Create opportunities for employee connection on a regular basis.
Encourage Feedback: The causes of burnout stem from numerous sources. What plagues your organization? Listen to the feedback from those most affected by the gaps in your operation. It gives you a focus area and might result in tangible solutions from those who experience the turbulence most.
Healthcare Leaders Have a Responsibility to Address Burnout
First and foremost, leaders have an obligation to take care of the employees they serve. Through understanding what burnout looks like and taking steps to address it sooner, the result is a culture shift that helps employees feel that their work environment cares not just about their output, but about their complete well-being.
When employees are part of a team that cares for them, where they feel able to speak up when they are struggling, and when they have support services they can lean on, they can better avoid burnout, more successfully navigate it if it comes and, over the long-term, thrive both personally and professionally.