Let’s face it… everyday life can be a lot. Not only do we deal with things going on in our personal lives, but we also deal with the effects of everything going on in the world around us. Add work to the mix and stress levels are sure to rise. We can’t always control our environments but being in a healthy work environment, where we spend a large amount of our time, can contribute to maintaining our mental health.
What does a healthy work environment look like? A healthy work environment is a place where staff feels appreciated, valued, and genuinely cared for mentally, physically, and emotionally. Employers can accomplish this in various ways including but not limited to:
• offering generous PTO that allows employees to maintain a healthy work-life balance.
• developing a wellness committee focused on creating initiatives that encourage self-care and prevent burnout.
• having zero tolerance for toxic work environments by training leadership and staff and taking appropriate disciplinary action when necessary.
• acknowledging and rewarding staff for great work.
In research from Gray et al. “Mental illness, deemed globally to account for 32% of years lived with a disability, generates significant impacts on workplaces. Healthcare workers experience high rates of mental ill health such as burnout, stress, and depression due to workplace conditions including excessive workloads, workplace violence and bullying, which also produces negative effects on patients as well as on the happiness and well-being of those who remain at work.” Gray, Patricia, et al. “Workplace-Based Organizational Interventions Promoting Mental Health and Happiness Among Healthcare Workers: A Realist Review.” National Library of Medicine, 11 Nov. 2019, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31717906.
At the height of COVID, healthcare facilities were understaffed, and healthcare professionals were overworked. The healthcare field is never easy, so imagine the burden of an epidemic complicating an already tough job. Many healthcare professionals walked away from their careers during this time to protect their mental health. That is why the implementation of wellness programs in the healthcare environment is necessary. We depend on healthcare professionals for care and assistance, and they should be able to depend on their employers to give them the care and assistance they need to function at an optimal level when performing their jobs.
A healthcare facility can only operate as well as its staff. If healthcare workers are stressed, burned out, and unhappy, patients will not receive the care they need and deserve. It’s a lose-lose for everyone. As a healthcare staffing agency, Compassionate Solutions strives to ensure that our nurses and allied healthcare workers are in the best work environments. We care about the needs of our healthcare professionals just as much as we care about the needs of our partners and the patients that we care for.
We may not have all the solutions, but we are compassionate. Our values are designed to help healthcare professionals remember why they chose this career field and feel proud and supported in the work that they do while strengthening the desire for others to become healthcare professionals for the joy of helping people.