Florida Center for Nursing starts pilot program aimed at combating burnout
New pilot program hopes to confront nurse burnout
Nurse burnout has been a big issue following COVID-19, but a new pilot program in Florida called 'Emotional Vaccines' aims to address that.
TAMPA, Fla. - Burnout is real on any job and got worse for nurses during the height of the pandemic years, so a new pilot program from the Florida Center for Nursing hopes to reduce burnout in the nursing workforce.
"High intensity, high pace, stressful. You're on alert constantly, even when you're taking a lunch," said Ashley Melendez, a patient care leader and nurse at St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa. "I actually knew I was experiencing it when I did not want to come to work anymore. I felt every time I came to work I was working myself to the bone. I came out of work exhausted, fatigued, not able to interact with my family, not able to really enjoy the quality of my personal life."
She got help through a BayCare program and family support, but not everyone takes those steps. The Florida Center for Nursing hopes to make it easier, recently launching a new pilot program called "Emotional Vaccines."
Current nurses and future nurses can sign up for the free program through this link: https://flcntr.org/fcnev.
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"If a nurse signs up for our pilot program, they’ll be enrolling into our wellness program, which includes text message wellness messages that are delivered weekly to their cell phone," said Rayna Letourneau, the executive director at the Florida Center for Nursing in Tampa.
Those texts would include a link to show you a short video, making tips and encouragement accessible to a nurse at any time.
"We often staff or take care of communities 24/7, so there’s not always an opportunity for nurses to attend classes for long periods of time or at different places," said Letourneau.
Letourneau said they're looking for feedback on the program over the next six months.
"Just because we build something, will they like it? Will they utilize it and will they find it helpful?" said Letourneau.
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That help is crucial before it’s too late.
"If you don't address nurse and burnout, right, that leads to, turnover. And you're not having the caregivers at the bedside that you need to take care of patients and family members. So, we have to make sure that we recognize and we respond to their burnout symptoms immediately," said Cynthia Rowell, the vice president and chief nursing officer at AdventHealth Riverview hospital. "The pandemic was hard. And so, nurses, we were in the business of healing and taking care of people and seeing people get better, and that didn't always happen during the pandemic."
Rowell said AdventHealth has resources for its healthcare workers, but sometimes addressing burnout takes different tools. She said something like FCN’s pilot program that offers immediate access could make a difference.
"I think it absolutely helps. You know, we deal with things that happen rapidly on the spot, especially in our emergency rooms and our ICUs," said Rowell.
That way, nurses can continue to be at their best to care for others.
"I've always said this, you know, you can't pour from an empty cup," said Melendez.
The Florida Center for Nursing said after the six months are up, they plan to go over how things went and review best practices. Letourneau said they will be depending on feedback from nurses, so they can scale up that kind of program statewide to support hospitals.
For more information or to sign up for the program, click here.
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