Enduring witness – Preventing Compassion Fatigue in Clinical Practice.

“Enduring witness” is a 30 minute DVD produced in Australia by North Coast GP Training.  The DVD traces the fictional relationship between a GP (Geoff) and one of his female patients (Lisa) as she make the transition from adolescence to young adulthood, through snippets from consultations about contraception, marriage, pregnancy and caring for her young children.

Lisa then develops breast cancer, and we watch how Geoff manages breaking the news, assisting her with treatment, remission, relapse and palliative care.  Issues relating to after care for Lisa’s family are covered at the end.

Some of Geoff’s “qualities” (empathy, openness, patient-centredness) are the very same factors which put him at risk of burn out and compassion fatigue.

The story is told primarily through Geoff’s eyes, and we gain access to some of his “hidden thoughts”.

The primary goal of the DVD is to promote discussion about preventing burnout which can occur from managing emotionally draining situations in clinical practice.  There is further opportunity to explore issues such as breaking bad new, support for colleagues, boundary issues and surviving the ups and downs of practice. 

The DVD will be shown at the start of the workshop.  This will be followed by a facilitated discussion between participants.  Discussion will focus on both the personal responses of participants to the DVD, and also on how as health practitioners and educators we can best equip our colleagues and trainees/students to deal with the emotional challenges that arise in clinical practice.

The DVD was produced to assist in education for both experienced practitioners, and those in training. It fills a gap in educational resources for this purpose.

Learning Objectives

By the conclusion of this workshop, participants will have had the opportunity to

1.     Reflect on those factors from their practice which put them at risk of burn out

2.     Express protective measure they use to help reduce the risk of burn out for themselves

3.     Learn from other participants how they protect themselves from burn out

4.     Consider how to assist their colleagues and/or trainees/students if they notice them becoming overwhelmed