Traumatic Events Among Cancer Patients That Lead to Compassion Fatigue in Nurses: A Qualitative Study

Context: Cancer care nurses are frequently exposed to patients' traumatic experiences and are at high risk of compassion fatigue.

Objectives: To describe the components and frequencies of traumatic events experienced by patients with cancer, which give rise to nurse compassion fatigue.

Methods: This study is a supplementary analysis of data from a previous qualitative study. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 30 Japanese nurses, with at least two years of experience in cancer care and a history of compassion fatigue. Content analysis and constant comparison was used to identify relevant subcategories and categories. The frequencies of these subcategories and categories were then evaluated.

Results: Eleven subcategories and four categories were identified. The kappa coefficient of these subcategories, determined by two independent raters, was 0.89. Subcategories with the highest frequencies among participants were as follows: having symptoms of cancer progression (n = 20; 67%), suffering because of insufficient pain control (n = 11; 37%), and being informed about getting cancer (n = 10; 33%). The four categories were as follows: worsening of physical condition (n = 20; 67%), bad news from doctors (n = 19; 63%), difficulty in treatment (n = 18; 60%), and emotional conflict with family (n = 6; 20%).

Conclusion: This study identified the components and frequencies of traumatic events among patients with cancer that lead to the onset of nurse compassion fatigue. Such information will aid in understanding the triggers of compassion fatigue, allowing for possible preparation to reduce the risk of this occupational hazard.