Burnout in Senior Care
Our Director of Program Development, Kim Keane, was recently quoted in an iAdvance Senior Care article focused on identifying, addressing, and preventing burnout among care providers.
Kim shared that emotional strain is a leading cause of staff burnout. She also noted that lack of training in a specific area, such as caring for someone with memory loss, can lead to staff burnout.
Kim Keane,
Director of Program Development
“Memory loss, in particular, calls on the caregiver to accept the alternate reality that the person they are caring for is living in, and that’s hard to do.”
“Working with individuals experiencing memory loss requires the caregiver to adjust their communication style. For example, a caregiver can kneel to meet the person eye to eye and use body language and tone to communicate. If you aren’t aware of these modifications, you can feel entirely defeated and stuck in a cycle of frustrating interactions.”
One of the first things a senior care community can do to help prevent burnout is to provide its team with high-quality training. While caregivers must meet minimum standards to carry out their jobs, adding 10-20 hours of specialized training, especially around memory care/dementia, can help them grow in empathy and give them confidence, staving off burnout.
View specialized training opportunities with Noah Homes here.
Administrators, nursing professionals, physicians, and/or government agencies that could benefit from our CEU-eligible and Department of Social Services-certified training focused on empathy and compassion, person-centered care, and dementia and disability rights, are encouraged to email Jerry Godinez at jgodinez@noahhomes.org.