Guidelines for the recognition, prevention, and remediation of burnout in health care professionals participating in the care of children with cancer: Report of the SIOP Working Committee on Psychosocial issues in Pediatric Oncology

This is the eighth official document of the SIOP Working Committee on Psych osocial issues in Pediatric Oncology, instituted in 1991. It dears with a t opic discussed and approved by the SIOP Committee; namely, "Recognition, pr evention, and remediation of burnout in health care professionals participa ting in the care of children with cancer." It is addressed to the Pediatric Oncology community and outlines: 1) the general definition of burnout as m ental and physical exhaustion, indifference, sense of failure as a professi onal, and sense of failure as a person; 2) the causes of burnout from the n ature of the work itself, the work environment, and the characteristics of the individual; 3) the prevention of burnout, changing the detrimental aspe cts of one's work environment and modifying one's own behavior; and accepti ng methods to remediate burnout when it occurs. Med. Pediatr. Oncol. 35:122 -125, 2000. (C) 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.