Compassion Fatigue: Exploring Early-Career Oncology Nurses’ Experiences
Abstract
Background Oncology nurses have a higher risk and rate of compassion fatigue (CF) compared to professionals in other specialties. CF exhibits tangible negative outcomes, affecting nurses' health and professional practice. . Objectives Early-career oncology nurses' unique CF experiences lack thorough scientific exploration. This secondary analysis seeks to qualitatively augment this paucity and illuminate targeted interventions. . Methods Open-ended interviews were conducted with five early-career inpatient oncology nurses. Subsequent transcripts were explored for CF themes secondarily using thematic analysis. . Findings Themes indicate that early-career oncology nurses enjoy connecting with patients and families, but over-relating, long patient stays, and high patient mortality rates trigger CF. Symptoms include internalizing patients' and families' pains and fears, being haunted by specific patient deaths, feeling emotionally depleted, assuming that all patients will die, and experiencing burnout, physical exhaustion, and hypervigilance protecting loved ones.
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- Authors
- Finley, B., & Sheppard, K.
- Affiliations
- University of Arizona (US)
- ORCID
- Finley, Brooke
- Venue
- Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing
- Publisher
- Oncology Nursing Society (ONS)
- Published
- 2017-06-01
- Volume
- 21
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- E61-E66
- ISSN
- 1092-1095 (ISSN-L)
- 1538-067X
- OpenAlex
- W2616306696
- Cited by
- 56
- References
- 30
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 1
- FWCI
- 5.76
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Clinical journal of oncology nursing (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Healthcare professionals’ stress and burnout
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Palliative and Oncologic Care
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Occupational Therapy › Occupational Health and Burnout
- Keywords
- compassion fatigue, oncology nurses, early career nurses, nurse burnout, emotional exhaustion, patient mortality, nurse-patient relationship, hypervigilance, nurse well-being
- MeSH terms
- Compassion Fatigue, Adult, Burnout, Professional, Female, Humans, Job Satisfaction, Male, Middle Aged, Neoplasms, Nursing Staff, Hospital, Oncology Nursing
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