Preventing burnout in nursing

'I was signed off from my work as a community nurse for a few months early last year due to burnout. I love community nursing – it’s all I’ve ever wanted to do. But I’ve decided to leave this area of nursing due to the fear of further damage to my mental and physical well-being,’ says Kelly, a community nurse based in the south east of England.

Initially Kelly ‘absolutely loved’ her job. But even before the pandemic she was finding the expectations and demands of her role ‘were taking over my life’. ‘No one prepares you during your training as a community nurse that there’s no let up. You have to give one hundred per cent all of the time,’ she says.