Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

CorrectCare

  • Minimize Compassion Fatigue, Avoid Burnout and Reignite Your Passion

    This is an excellent introduction to compassion fatigue (CF) (aka corrections fatigue) experienced by correctional health care staff. "While there is some literature on CF and burnout among correctional officers, there is scant information on how these phenomena affect correctional health care staff. This article discusses ways that CF may adversely impact the well-being of qualified mental health professionals who work in jail and prison settings. When left untreated, CF may result in serious and detrimental personal costs to the individual and organization. These costs can be mitigated by positive self-care, which also will be addressed in this article" (p. 10). Sections of this article cover: what compassion fatigue is; the role of trauma; why we neglect ourselves; the importance of prevention; compassion satisfaction-the flip side of CF; calendar it-planning ahead for self-care; organizational considerations; and taking care of yourself.