Supporting ourselves

Abstract

Compassion fatigue, also known as secondary traumatic stress, can result from a social worker working with traumatized clients in all areas of social work. If affected by compassion fatigue, the social worker will begin to experience Post Traumatic Stress Disorder-like symptoms, which can have a deleterious effect on his/her personal and professional life. If the symptoms of compassion fatigue are left untreated, it could lead to ethical concerns with the client or leaving the social work profession. It is extremely important for the social worker to seek individual help to treat the symptoms and effects of compassion fatigue; however, it is also important to seek out the assistance of therapeutic support groups. This paper will discuss various strategies that can be employed in therapeutic support groups for social workers to help them ameliorate the effects of compassion fatigue.

Sociological conceptualizations of compassion fatigue: Expanding our understanding

“…For instance, Adlerian therapy, focusing on internal factors related to the worker, might be a useful tool for compassion fatigue as reported from a case study example with firefighters (Garner, Baker, & Hagelgans, 2016). Bourassa and Clements (2010) found group support is efficacious for social workers experiencing compassion fatigue. Similarly, outcomes from a small survey of military health care providers who took part in a Care Provider Support Program (CPSP) reported improved resiliency and reduced compassion fatigue (Weidlich & Ugarriza, 2015).…”