Introduction
The article “Rekindling the Flame: Using mindfulness to end nursing burnout” is devoted to the issue of professional burnout among nurses. It has presented the symptoms, constituents, and stages of the disorder. Besides, it suggests some ways how to avoid the problem.
Symptoms, Constituents, and Stages of Nursing Burnout
The main symptoms of nursing burnout are acknowledged to be: 1) tiredness, weariness, and exhaustion after implementing the professional activity; 2) some psychosomatic problems, such as oscillations of the blood pressure, headaches, digestive and cardiovascular problems, neurologic disorders, and insomnia; 3) a negative attitude to patients (instead of an initially positive attitude); 4) a negative tune to the duties under accomplishment; 5) aggressive tendencies, including anger and irritability about patients and colleagues; 6) a negative functional attitude towards oneself, and 7) anxieties, pessimistic mood, depression, hopelessness, and a feeling of being guilty (Heard, Hartman, & Bushardt, 2013). Nursing burnout can be considered as a professional crisis that is connected with nursing in general and not only with interpersonal relations that are involved in the working process. Burnout can be treated as distress, which is anxiety, depression, hostility, and anger, and as the third stage of the general syndrome of adaptation, which is the stage of exhaustion. Nursing burnout is not a mere result of simple stress but a consequence of uncontrollable stress. Nursing burnout includes three constituents: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization (or, cynicism) and reduction of professional achievements. Emotional exhaustion implies a feeling of emotional bankruptcy and tiredness which has been entrained by the work.
Depersonalization means a cynic, indifferent attitude to work. The reduction of professional achievements involves a growing feeling of incompetency in the professional sphere, as well as the realization of failure in it. Nurses who are prone to professional burnout tend to have excessively high requirements for themselves. They happen to associate their work with their fate and mission. Therefore, for such people, there is not a borderline between work and private life (Heard et al., 2013). Professional burnout has three stages with four symptoms for each stage. The first stage is tension. It has the following characteristics: 1) self-discontent; 2) seeing no way out; 3) much anxiety about a certain situation, and 4) depression. The second stage is resistance. Its features are as follows: 1) inadequate emotional reaction; 2) moral disorientation; 3) emotional economy, and 4) reduction of duties. The third stage is the exhaustion. It has the following peculiarities: 1) emotional deficiency; 2) emotional detachment; 3) personal detachment; and 4) psychosomatic and psychovegetative disorders (Heard et al., 2013).
Prevention of Nursing Burnout
To avoid professional burnout it is necessary to 1) assume an adequate amount of responsibility which is possible to be tackled; 2) be able to shift from one activity to another; 3) pay less attention to conflicts in the workplace, and 4) avoid being perfect at everything. It is critical to realize that work is only one of the parts of life. Besides, it is necessary to be aware that professional burnout is not a mere personal problem but a matter of a profession, which should help to treat its symptoms adequately and try amending some professional aspects promptly (Heard et al., 2013).
Conclusion
To conclude, it is necessary to point out that the article under consideration has discussed the issue of professional burnout among nurses. It has reflected on the symptoms, constituents, and stages of the disorder. Apart from that, it has outlined some ways so as not to be prone to this problem.
References
Heard, P. L., Hartman, S., & Bushardt, S. C. (2013). Rekindling the flame: Using mindfulness to end nursing burnout. Nursing Management, 44(11), 24-29.