The six-step guide was published March 18 as part of the first federal campaign focused on combating burnout among healthcare workers and is structured to support “organizational-level changes that will impact and improve the mental health of their employees,” the agency said in a news release about the new guide.
The “Impact Wellbeing Guide: Taking Action to Improve Healthcare Worker Wellbeing” is based on six steps that were pilot-tested and refined by a working group of six CommonSpirit Health hospitals in the last six months of 2023.
Six key steps outlined in the guide:
- Conduct a review of hospital operations to determine how they support professional well-being.
- Build a dedicated team to support professional well-being.
- Remove barriers to seeking care, such as intrusive mental health questions on credentialing applications.
- Create a suite of communication tools meant to share updates with the workforce about the organization’s journey to improve well-being.
- Integrate professional well-being measures into an ongoing quality improvement project.
- Create a 12-month plan to continue to advance efforts on professional well-being.
The guide comes as burnout levels remain high across the industry. Nearly half of physician respondents indicated they were burned out in Medscape‘s 2024 report on burnout and depression. Fifty-six percent of nurse respondents reported experiencing symptoms of burnout in a McKinsey & Co. survey last spring, which was published in November. Meanwhile, bills meant to bolster protection for hospital workers and support their mental health are receiving growing recognition in Congress.
