What I Wish I Knew as a New Graduate

Working in health care is fulfilling. It's an honor to show up for people in vulnerable moments. It's inspiring to be part of someone's healing process. There is so much potential for growth in every moment. When I stop and look at this career I've chosen as an occupational therapist, I am filled with gratitude. To be in this space of gratitude, I have also had to navigate some really challenging lessons that were not lessons I anticipated. Even the ones that we touched on in graduate school, I don't think I truly grasped the importance of.

First and foremost, drop the shame associated with feeling burn out or compassion fatigue

We talked about and defined these things when I was in OT school but I think I assumed, like many people in the room, it wouldn't happen to me. I love occupational therapy. I am a resilient person with a list of coping strategies and hobbies to maintain a solid work-life balance with. I was going to be aware and not fall into the trap! No worries, right?

Wrong. In my first several years in this field, I have felt burn out AND compassion fatigue so many times.

Passion for working in healthcare is beautiful and powerful. As a healthcare provider, I want to give it my all 100% of the time. And then...I catch myself thinking about patients outside of work at least 5 times a day. I fall asleep at night thinking about them. I wake up thinking about them. It leaves me feeling emotionally and physically exhausted. That mindset is not sustainable. It comes back to the concept "you cannot pour from an empty cup." The first time I felt this, I was kind of embarrassed about it. I'm supposed to be so happy in my job. That feeling of shame just amplified what I was feeling. It started to get better when I stopped running away from it and started looking directly at the problem I was having. I started talking about it with people in similar roles. I started to realize I was not alone. Most people had a similar experience at some point in their career. I was not alone.

When I find that I am thinking about work constantly, it usually means it is time for me to re-evaluate how I am doing with prioritizing other parts of my life. There is more to me than my work. There is more that is important to my happiness and well being. I have to remind myself from time to time. In order to give 100% to work at while I'm at work, I have to let go outside of the workday. That being said, it's pretty much impossible for me to never think about my patients/clients outside of work hours. I've just chosen to notice when that happens and gently remind myself to be present. What it comes down to is that some moments, many of us will experience burn out and compassion fatigue. We need to rise up as a community to help each other navigate it. We have tools to help ourselves and each other.

Additionally, I've come to learn that my desire to help people heal as much as possible is sometimes at odds with the current healthcare climate. I watched a really interesting video recently about burnout in healthcare that argued that the term itself is "victim shaming." It described that as compassionate healthcare workers, our desire to give the most quality care possible can be at odds with the profit driven healthcare/insurance system. I can't tell you how many times I've been heartbroken over what happens next. That in itself causes feelings of helplessness. I have no true solution to offer for this. All we can do is be the best providers we can be in the moment and continue to advocate for a more person-centered system. If anyone has another strategy, I would love to hear it.

The team you work with can make or break a job experience

When I graduated, I had ideals of what populations I wanted to work with. That was in the forefront of every job search. What I did not really know was the impact of a rehab team dynamic. It makes sense when you think about it, your caseload will change a lot more often than your team will. I was told as a new graduate that mentor-ship was important to seek out, which is really true. In my first job, I found what is even more important to me is a collaborative group of motivated people. Working on different floors with different teams, I quickly learned I preferred the floors with a feeling of community: a place where the therapy, nursing, and medical teams all work together is a place where healing occurs. I can be a better therapist when I don't have to think twice about asking the opinion of someone in the same or a different discipline. We all have different areas of expertise and benefit from sharing knowledge. Patients can feel it when a group of people work well together. You laugh more when you work well together. You can support each other and help each other grow as healthcare providers. It is so important to me that even when I moved across the country and was looking for a new job, the team dynamic was what I was most curious about in interviews. When I toured facilities, I paid close attention to the way people spoke to each other and I asked about team dynamics.

This became an even more significant truth for me a few weeks ago when I was struggling a lot with an event that happened at work. The team I work with stepped up to support me without hesitation. They were understanding of my emotional response. They worked with my patients when I had to call off from work. They did not judge me for what I was navigating. Whenever I go to thank them, they tell me it was not a big deal. Of course, we would all show up for each other with no questions asked. That is a blessing in a workplace and something to not be taken for granted. There are hard moments but the right group of people make them a lot easier.

Now, there are many health care providers that do not have a team in their immediate workplace. If you are travelling your team may change often. If you are in home health, you may not see your co-workers often. If you are in a small school or clinic, you may be the only person working in your specific role. We can still find this support system elsewhere. Social media has lent itself to creating relationships, groups, and communities of health care providers supporting each other. There are many of us out there that want to see all healthcare providers thrive in their skill set, their practice, and their work-life balance. Take the time to create a team that helps you grow.

It is REALLY okay to not know the answer or what to do next

As an occupational therapist, I treat every individual differently. Being client-centered means there are not cookie-cutter plans for what comes next. That means admitting not always knowing the answer to a question, what comes next, or what will work. Part of being a good health care provider is continuing to learn. Also, even if you have a million things memorized as a student and preparing for your boards - you likely won't remember it all. That's the beauty of working at a time when information is at our fingertips!

Somewhere early on in my career I decided to start telling my patients and their families when I need to look into an answer more to be sure that I give them the best information possible. I found that telling them that you are going to put in effort to find an answer or solution is much more beneficial and lets them know that you are willing to put in extra time for them. Plus, then when I do have an answer they believe me because they know that I would be honest if I was unsure.

It is okay to take days off! Seriously!

I remember when I first started working I would only take the minimum possible days off for events I needed to attend, even when that meant getting in from a flight after midnight and being at work at 7 the next morning. I would treat time off like a sprint. Then I would come back to work more tired than when I left! I never took a day off that I didn't absolutely need off. It is something many people I know who don't work in healthcare don't relate to. We feel pressure to show up for our patients/clients even if we have the days off available to us. We don't want to create more work for our colleagues. We don't have a job that we can push our to do list to the next day. I've struggled a lot with feeling guilty about taking time off, especially calling off sick. I still avoid calling off usually until my husband reminds me that when I am sick, I can't provide quality therapy anyway! I usually have to remind myself that when a coworker needs a day off, I never mind helping out and putting in extra work. We are a team, after all.

So, I've tried to alter my approach. I make sure I plan trips in a way that I get enough sleep before returning to work. If I'm going a long stretch without a day off, I plan a three day weekend. I've come to learn that taking a day off from time to time usually leaves me feeling revitalized. I usually come back to work with new treatment ideas and a fresh perspective. I remember that my place of work has a system ready for when I need the day off. There is a reason paid time of exists. Hoarding it (unless planning for a really rad adventure) is not helping me.

I would love to hear the lessons you have learned about working in health care. What would you go back and tell yourself prior to starting your first job?

I have a dream of bringing personal experiences of lessons learned on the field to healthcare programs around the country. It is a big project that I look at often and turn away from because it's an intimidating undertaking. That being said - I am calling out to the healthcare providers around me that inspire me, if you are interested in sharing your perspective to be part of a collaboration I would really love to hear from you! I am looking for people from all different settings/roles, who have different amounts of experience. Whether you graduated 6 months ago or 30 years ago, your experience is valuable. Comment below! Message me! Find me on instagram @selfcareselflove_OT!

With Love + Gratitude,

Samantha