Managing workplace stress

With reports of workplace stress constantly on the rise, the negative impacts of it are being seen across the board. The healthcare industry is no exception and is particularly susceptible to high rates of worker burnout and stress.

According to an October 2012 JAMA study, 45.8 percent of physicians report experiencing at least one symptom of burnout. As it stands, stress among healthcare workers has been linked to a number of costly problems from mistakes in the operating room to an impending physician shortage.

[See also: Nurse staffing, burnout linked to HAIs]

While stress may not be tangible, many of its impacts on employers are. Problems like absenteeism, increased healthcare costs and high employee turnover rates are quantifiable and easily linked back to stress. Reports widely vary on exactly how much workplace stress is costing American industry, with some estimating that it costs as much as $300 billion annually.

According to Harriett Wall, a consultant at Kohler Healthcare who specializes in workplace stress management, employer efforts to curb work stress have been fragmented over the last decade. Many employers do have policies in place to help a stressed employee – commonly in the form of an employee assistance program (EAP) – but few of these programs seem to be approaching the issue from a preventive standpoint.

While EAPs and compliance trainings have become commonplace, and can be helpful, they tend to only reach employees who are already under duress, Wall noted.

Furthermore, EAPs and compliance trainings often only address issues that companies are compelled to address, which may not be the long-term answer. “To ignore these things because of the absence of legal standards is very shortsighted,” Wall said.

If companies want to reduce their stress-related costs they need to examine the issue from a preventive angle. “Managing stress in the workplace is the next big challenge,” Wall said.

Fortunately, employers can take steps to help prevent workplace stress instead of simply mitigating it. Do an Internet search on preventing workplace stress and you’ll get many suggestions.

Wall says companies need to examine acceptable standards of behavior and clearly communicate them to employees. Clear employee standards combined with the fostering of a team-like atmosphere can help to create a less stressful work atmosphere. 

In its brief on “Stress at Work”, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recommends implementing organizational change by bringing in an outside contractor who specializes in stress management but the agency also offers four basic steps employers can take on their own to help prevent occupational stress:

• Ensure that the workload is in line with workers' capabilities and resources. 
   
• Design jobs to provide meaning, stimulation and opportunities for workers to use their skills. 
   
• Clearly define workers' roles and responsibilities. 
   
• Give workers opportunities to participate in decisions and actions affecting their jobs.

Photo used with permission from Shuttershock.com.