Losing compassion for patients? The implications of COVID-19 on compassion fatigue and event-related post-traumatic stress disorder in nurses

The authors investigated a psychological process that links characteristics of events related to the coronavirus disease (2019) COVID-19 pandemic (i.e. perceived novelty, disruptiveness and criticality) to compassion fatigue [(CF), a form of caregiver burnout] and subsequent post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in nurses.

Administering two online surveys (October and November 2020) resulted in matched data from 175 nurses responsible for patient care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Perceived disruptiveness and criticality of COVID-19 events were positively associated with nurses' CF, which also mediated those characteristics' effects on PTSD instigated by COVID-19. Contrary to the authors' hypothesis, the perceived novelty of COVID-19 events was not significantly associated with CF nor was the indirect effect of perceived novelty on PTSD mediated by CF.

The authors extend event system theory by investigating the psychological processes linking event features and resultant outcomes while providing practical implications on preparations for future unexpected and potentially life-altering events.