healthy boundaries and maintain self-care . Compassion fatigue can be harmful to the team member and can be difficult to recover from . Left unchecked , it can cause poor mental health , such as anxiety , depression and post-traumatic stress disorder . It also has an impact on the organisation , due to increased sickness absence , more complaints and inter-staff conflict . ⁶

Burnout , on the other hand , occurs when there is a mismatch between the nature of the job and the person who does the job . ⁷ While there is some overlap , burnout is not specific to the caring professions and is associated with increased workload and institutional stress . It is characterised by overwhelming exhaustion , feelings of cynicism , detachment from the job and feelings of ineffectiveness or lack of accomplishment . ⁸ Unlike stress responses to critical incidents , burnout is cumulative , developing over time . ⁸ It is no surprise then that , with an ever-increasing workload after the height of the Covid-19 pandemic , burnout is increasingly affecting the veterinary profession . Being highly skilled and wanting to provide a first-rate service , while being short-staffed and overloaded , increases the risk of poor mental health . It is important for team members to discuss the impact their work is having on their wellbeing , as burnout is unlikely to resolve on its own without the causative factors being addressed . Therefore , promoting an open culture where team members discuss their concerns is to be encouraged . Schwartz Rounds are one of the ways organisations can offer an open culture to their teams .

Table 2 . Strategies to reduce compassion fatigue .

Strategies to reduce compassion fatigue

Focus on the four core components of resilience : adequate sleep , proper nutrition , regular physical activity and active relaxation .

Practise good hygiene .

Wash after your work shift as a symbolic ‘ washing away ’.

Learn about your colleagues so you can establish connections .

Celebrate successes and mourn sorrows with co-workers .

Allow yourself some time to be alone to think .

Practise your spiritual beliefs or reach out to a faith leader for support .

Take time away from work to experience other things . Find things to look forward to . Communicate with friends and family .

Create special ceremonies or rituals that allow you to focus your thoughts on letting go of stress or honouring the memory of something positive .

A useful list ⁹ outlining strategies to reduce the likelihood of compassion fatigue in disaster workers is included in Table 2 . These could also be used by veterinary professionals and some of them can be driven by the organisation through Schwartz Rounds . These strategies may be helpful to individuals but , without organisational support , individuals may have difficulty prioritising and participating in these strategies , due to busy lives and shift work . Schwartz Rounds offer organisations a solution that encourages connections and reflection for whole teams . As we are social beings , it is important to create belonging in our teams : Schwartz Rounds can be an effective way of doing this .

Benefits of Schwartz Rounds

Even within an organisation committed to staff welfare , it can still be difficult to support team members with the emotional impact of caring for patients and clients . While individual conversations , guidance and signposting are helpful , Schwartz Rounds offer additional benefits : for team members , the forum helps them learn about their colleagues , discuss difficult or uplifting situations , and provides time for reflection ; for the organisation , team working is improved by team members being able to see things from each other ’ s perspectives .

Schwartz Rounds are a long-term commitment , which demonstrates to employees that their organisation cares about their wellbeing . Improving the wellbeing and working experience of staff results in reduced absenteeism and improved recruitment and retention . Better staff engagement also leads to improved patient experience , which may reduce complaints . ¹⁰ A study by George , ¹¹ although having limitations , found that attendance at Schwartz Rounds helped staff to recognise their emotional responses as being normal in a high-pressure environment . George ¹¹ also demonstrated that stigma was reduced by normalising the emotional impact of caring on healthcare teams . Organisational culture can be improved by encouraging the sharing and disclosure of these feelings , in contrast to individual counselling or private access to occupational health professionals , which can reduce secondary stressors for team members . Without support , regular exposure to human and animal suffering can cause stress and reduce the ability to feel emotions , leading to compassion fatigue .

Support from colleagues , good team working and opportunities for reflection can support caregivers to administer compassionate care . ¹² Reed et al .' s ¹ study supports the suggestion that Schwartz Rounds strengthen interprofessional working and lessen organisational hierarchy , with participants reporting a reduced sense of isolation . This is beneficial to the organisation , and to team members , to support healthy caregivers to return to high performance after exposure to the traumatic experience of a patient or client .

10 Veterinary Nursing Journal