by Brandon Hess, CVPM, CCFP
What if I told you that most veterinary practices are missing a big opportunity? An opportunity to not only increase job satisfaction, but to also have a positive impact on attrition. In a 2015 study conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), they found that the top two rated aspects of job satisfaction were based around how they were treated in the workplace. Additionally, staff reported their level of satisfaction for these two items at approximately 30%. In veterinary medicine, compassion fatigue awareness plays directly into satisfaction levels.
Compassion fatigue is an inevitable result of working in the veterinary field. It is also a common term heard around the hospital. When it comes to managing compassion fatigue, there are two strategies that must be in line with one another: a personal strategy and professional strategy. There are things that employees must do to own their compassion fatigue (check out my previous blog post), and there are responsibilities that the practice must own. Beginning this process can be overwhelming, but in just 5 steps your practice can be on its way to a healthier, more satisfying workplace.
Step 1: Create a Trustful Environment
Trust is the foundation of any personal or professional relationship. It is essential to create a trustful culture because it will allow staff to be comfortable talking about their emotions. Staff have to trust that they can be vulnerable without judgement or repercussions.
Step 2: Increase Awareness
The first step in having an impact on anything is to increase the level of awareness. Most staff members will get to the point where they can identify compassion fatigue after it has impacted them significantly. The goal is to predict triggers of compassion fatigue before it impacts staff members. One thing that employers/managers can do to help with this awareness is to name it when they see it. If you see a staff member struggling while at work, pull them in for a private conversation and check in with them. Team accountability is key to any successful compassion fatigue treatment plan. Teams will not hold each other accountable or be open about their feelings, without a trustful environment.
Step 3: Anticipate Triggers
Being proactive is always the best preventative. There will be consistent events within the hospital that you can identify as triggers. Understanding what your staff’s individual triggers are, will allow you to anticipate individual fatigue. Some textbook triggers for the veterinary hospital are: losing a long-term patient, an elderly client losing a pet, and an owner who accidentally injures their own pet. A great team exercise for your hospital would be to brainstorm triggers at one of your staff meetings.
Step 4: Provide Support
The definition of support will be different for each staff member, but this is an important step in employee satisfaction. How we react as leaders within the practice when employees are experiencing this stress will have a dramatic impact on them. Ask them what they need when they are experiencing these traumatic feelings. If all else fails, encourage them to take some time off. This could even just be for the remainder of the day. If there was an occurrence that impacted multiple staff members, then you could set aside an hour for everyone to discuss the case. Just talking through the traumatic experience can help alleviate their symptoms.
Step 5: Follow-Up
Take time to check in with any employees that you know were recently working through their compassion fatigue. If they took some time off, a simple “How was your time off?” or “How are you feeling?” will go a long way.
Compassion fatigue, or Secondary Traumatic Stress (STS), is contagious in that others’ stories can easily become yours. The impact of STS can spread from person to person as they discuss their personal dialogue. Getting ahead of, and anticipating these events can prevent the spreading of the symptoms. How you set up your practice’s treatment plan, and how you take care of yourself, will set the tone for how your staff respond.
Brandon Hess is a certified veterinary practice manager, and a certified compassion fatigue professional. He is currently an Associate Consultant at Tassava Consulting and Veterinary Management Support. Brandon was the Practice Manager for the 2016 AAHA Veterinary Specialty Practice of the Year.