Self-Care for the Mental Health Professional
Professional burnout is prevalent in Western society. There is evidence that healthcare providers, including (and perhaps especially) mental health care professionals, are disproportionately likely to suffer from this debilitating condition. Both patient care and clinician's well-being suffer as a result. In this presentation, Dr. Núnez proposes self-care and systemic strategies focusing attention on the prevention and treatment of emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and diminished sense of professional accomplishment. Borrowing principles from the growing field of positive psychology, timeworn and empirically-supported techniques for increasing positive emotion, engagement, nourishing relationships, enhancing meaning, and affirming accomplishment are provided as the effective antidote to burnout.
