Webinar: Tired, wired, mired and inspired! Strategies for preventing burnout and compassion fatigue in harm reduction efforts

Many people who work in harm reduction consider their work to be a "calling." Two occupational hazards, burnout and compassion fatigue/secondary trauma, can undermine that calling and diminish your effectiveness. Burnout is caused by feeling ineffective in your work and organizational/team stress. Compassion fatigue (also called secondary trauma/secondary PTSD) results from absorbing the traumatic stories and experiences of clients. Both occupational hazards can lead to a loss of energy, loss of hope, loss of enthusiasm, loss of idealism, spiritual distress, and decreased effectiveness.

This virtual presentation focuses on how to prevent and recover from burnout and compassion fatigue, with an emphasis on self-care and the four things high performers do to prevent burnout and compassion fatigue. We will also discuss how to maintain energy, reduce frustration in your clinical work, and feel more successful.

Learning Objectives:

• Be aware of the four stages of burnout
• Understand the differences between burnout and compassion fatigue.
• Evaluate your vulnerability for developing compassion fatigue
• Learn and utilize 10 strategies to prevent burnout and compassion fatigue.
• Learn skills to reduce frustration in your clinical work.
• Feel a greater sense of success in your work.