IMPACT OF UNHEALTHY HEALTHCARE
WORKPLACES AND WORKFORCES
Emotional symptoms
* anxiety, depression, or anger
Physical manifestations
* fatigue, headache, and insomnia
Mental changes
* decrease in sleep, concentration, and memory
Behavioral changes
* smoking, drinking, mood changes, crying, and outbursts for
no outward apparent reason
contributing factors to unhealthy workplace
- Role Issues
- Gender Roles
- Cultural Incompetence and Systemic
Racial Inequity - Cultural Incompetence and the
LGBTQ+ Community - Staffing Shortages
- Workplace Violence
- Impact of Electronic Documentation
Burdens - Exposure to Needlestick and Sharps
Injuries - Exposure to Infectious Agents and
Hazardous Chemicals - Incidence of Musculoskeletal Harm
- Upheaval in the Organization
physical response to unhealthy workplace
Physical signs of ill health:
- Increase in flu, colds, accident
- Change in sleeping habits
- Chronic fatigue
physical response to unhealthy workplace
Chronic signs of decreased ability to manage stress:
- Headaches
- Hypertension
- Backaches
- Gastrointestinal problems
physical response to unhealthy workplace
Unhealthy coping activities:
- Increased use of drugs and alcohol
- Increased or decreased weight
- Smoking
- Crying, yelling, blaming, mood swings
mental response to unhealthy workplace
- Dread of going to work every day
- Rigid thinking and a desire to go by all
the rules in all cases; inability to tolerate
any changes - Forgetfulness and anxiety about work
to be done; more frequent errors and
incidents - Returning home exhausted and unable
to participate in enjoyable activities - Confusion about duties and roles
- Generalized anxiety
- Decrease in concentration
- Depression
- Anger, irritability, impatience
- Blaming, negotiating
spiritual and emotional response to unhealthy workplace
- Sense of being a failure; disappointed in work
performance - Anger and resentment toward patients, colleagues, and managers; overall irritable attitude
- Lack of positive feelings toward others
- Cynicism toward patients, blaming them for their problems
- Excessive worry, insecurity, lowered self-esteem
- Increased family and friend conflict
- Disconnection from family and friends and usual sources of support and love
RESPONSES TO UNHEALTHY WORK ENVIRONMENTS
Stress
* Dynamics of Stress
Unrelenting, Work-Related Stress
* Burnout
DYNAMICS OF STRESS
- Initially increase in performance
- Remained elevated performance
suffers - General adaptation syndrome (GAS)
Burn Out
A “prolonged response to chronic emotional and interpersonal stressors on the job”
Sources of stressors
* Environment
* Individual
* Interactions
COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF BURNOUT
- Physical exhaustion
- Mental exhaustion
- Emotional exhaustion
- Cynicism
- Somatization
- Depersonalization
HEALTH WORK ENVIRONMENT
- Workplace stress prevention
- Emotional Intelligence
- Management of Stress
- Symptom Awareness and Management
- Social Support
- Counseling
- Responsibilities of Leaders
- Responsibilities of Managers
- Goal Setting
- Managing Information and Clutter
- Delegating
- Management of Time
- Organization
- Policies – Local, State, and National
time management
- Track your time.
- Do not do too much.
- Learn to say NO.
- STOP procrastinating.
- Avoid complaining/whining.
- Good is good enough perfectionism not needed.
- Avoid interruptions.
- Avoid information overload.
