Leading teams while exhausted: Perspectives from healthcare epidemiology and beyond

Abstract

Mental fatigue and burnout are concerns for healthcare organizations, but their effects on leaders have not been thoroughly studied. Infectious diseases teams and leaders are at risk for mental fatigue and burnout due to the increased demands from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, additive effects of severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) (omicron) and δ (delta) variant surges, and unique pre-existing pressures. No single intervention can reduce stress and burnout in healthcare workers. Work-hour limitations may have the biggest impact in physician burnout mitigation. Institutional and individual programs focused on mindfulness may improve well-being in the workplace. Leading during times of stress requires a multimodal approach and an understanding of goals and priorities. Greater awareness of burnout and fatigue across the healthcare spectrum and continued research are required to advance healthcare worker well-being.

“You can push these conversations, but don’t push your patient away”: healthcare learner perspectives on virtual simulation games as an educational approach to address vaccine hesitancy

“…While research exists to measure and address moral distress, including strategies such as specialist consultations, reflective debriefing, and educational interventions, further rigorous research is needed in this area ( 41 ). As HCP are at an increased risk of burnout, anxiety, and depression now more than ever, it is essential for institutions to not only provide mental health resources following burnout, but to provide strategies and training to avoid and address moral distress early in HCP education ( 37 , 42 , 43 ).…”

Implementing behavior change in healthcare epidemiology and antimicrobial stewardship: The worst that can happen is you fail

“… 31 Much like in other disciplines, work hour limitations and institutional and individual programs focused on mindfulness may improve well-being in the healthcare epidemiology and stewardship workplace. 32 While these measures are necessary, they are not sufficient to eliminate healthcare worker burnout or maximize team function. Team dynamics are critically important for staff engagement and group performance.…”