The healthcare industry is facing a mental health crisis. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that almost half of healthcare workers reported a feeling of burnout in 2022. This is up from 32% who felt the same before the pandemic. Even more concerning, many are looking to act on this burnout as the feds also report 44% of those in healthcare are planning to switch jobs.
Although mental health is a concern in many fields, fatigue and burnout rates have increased more for those who work in the healthcare industry than those who work in other fields. The CDC’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health launched a new campaign in an effort to combat this growing problem.
Campaign aims to change the culture within healthcare
The campaign, Impact Wellbeing, moves beyond resources to aid those who suffer from burnout to encourage proactive measures to better ensure healthy professional wellbeing. These efforts include:
- Gather information. The campaign encourages healthcare organizations to administer the NIOSH Worker Well-Being Questionnaire. This can result in accurate data about worker well-being. Healthcare organization leaders can then use this information to develop a strategy tailored to their organization.
- Eliminate hazards. The data above may provide information about potential hazards. This could include use of increased supervision to better address workplace threats.
- Promote engagement. The CDC also notes that these types of efforts are generally more successful in implementation if workers are allowed to offer feedback and suggestions to refine the efforts.
The campaign also encourages organizations to provide more opportunities for self care.
Campaign also draws attention to serious flaw in professional credentialing process
Another notable addition to the campaign: a push to remove questions from credentialing about mental health. This serves as a reminder of the many things a licensing board may take into consideration if under investigation and the need to protect your interests when subject to such an investigation.
Attorney John Rivas is responsible for this communication.