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Review
. 2023 May;68(5):692-705.
doi: 10.4187/respcare.10632. Epub 2022 Dec 5.

Enhancing Respiratory Therapists' Well-Being: Battling Burnout in Respiratory Care

Andrew G Miller  1 , Katlyn L Burr  2 , Jerin Juby  3 , Carl R Hinkson  4 , Cheryl A Hoerr  5 , Karsten J Roberts  6 , Brian J Smith  7 , Shawna L Strickland  8 , Kyle J Rehder  9
Affiliations
Review

Enhancing Respiratory Therapists' Well-Being: Battling Burnout in Respiratory Care

Andrew G Miller et al. Respir Care. 2023 May.

Abstract

Burnout is a major problem in health care and is associated with adverse sequelae for patients, health care workers, and organizations. Burnout among respiratory therapists (RTs) is as high as 79% and is associated with poor or ineffective leadership, inadequate staffing, high work load, non-leadership position, and work environment. An understanding of burnout is necessary for both staff and leadership to ensure RT well-being. This narrative review will discuss the psychology of burnout, prevalence, drivers, mitigation strategies, and future directions for research.

Keywords: burnout; leadership; management; respiratory care practitioner; respiratory therapist; respiratory therapy; well-being.

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Conflict of interest statement

Mr Miller is a section editor for Respiratory Care and discloses relationships with Saxe Communications and S2N Health. Ms Burr discloses a relationship with Hill-Rom. Mr Hinkson is the president of the American Association for Respiratory Care. The remaining authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
The relationship between demands and stressors and support and resources. When demands and stressors are greater than support and resources, individuals will be emotionally drained into the red zone.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Consequences of burnout to the organization, patients, and individual staff.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
RTs = respiratory therapists; MDs = medical doctors; interns = first-year resident physicians; RNs = registered nurses; critical care RNs; APPs = advanced practice providers; pharmacists.
Fig. 4.
Fig. 4.
Drivers of burnout.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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