The study “Compassion Fatigue: Secondary Traumatization of Long-Term Care Staff and Family Caregivers” was developed within the three-year project "Innovative Community Care Models – ICCC", implemented in six local communities in Austria, Serbia, and Montenegro. In Serbia, the project was carried out by Red Cross organizations in Sombor and Pirot.

The project was funded by the European Commission and co-funded by the Austrian Development Agency.

All gendered terms used in this publication in the masculine grammatical form are intended to refer to both men and women equally.

This document reflects the views of the authors only. The European Commission and the Austrian Development Agency cannot be held responsible for the use of the information contained herein.

Key findings:

The results show the presence of compassion fatigue among both institutional long-term care workers and informal (family) caregivers.

• Institutional staff:
  The average score on the compassion satisfaction scale was 40.28 (SD=6.81), on the burnout scale 23.71 (SD=6.89), and on the secondary traumatic stress scale 25.07 (SD=7.18).
  Most respondents reported moderate or high levels of compassion satisfaction (49.0% and 50.0% respectively), with moderate levels of compassion fatigue (burnout – 58.3%, secondary traumatic stress – 57.3%).
• Informal caregivers:
  The average compassion satisfaction score was 31.58 (SD=8.23), burnout 27.66 (SD=8.64), and secondary traumatic stress 28.37 (SD=8.33).
  The majority (72.2%) had moderate levels of compassion satisfaction, along with moderate levels of compassion fatigue (burnout – 67.4%, secondary traumatic stress – 64.2%).

While few respondents scored high on burnout and secondary traumatic stress, the fact that over half of both professional and informal caregivers had moderate scores indicates a clear need to pay more attention to mental health in the care sector.

Recommendations:

Long-term care institutions should establish support systems such as regular supervision, therapeutic groups, stress prevention training, and appropriate rest breaks. Special attention should also be given to the challenges faced by staff in rural areas, where higher compassion fatigue scores may stem from additional household responsibilities, long commutes, limited access to mental health services, and greater isolation.

These findings can support the development of public policies to ensure additional support for caregivers, especially in rural settings, through improved infrastructure, transportation, and access to psychosocial assistance.

Given demographic changes, including population aging and labor migration (especially to Western Europe), further research is needed into risk and protective factors affecting caregivers’ mental health. Targeted studies and policies can help ensure caregivers receive the support they need, improving both care quality and caregiver well-being.

Authors: Milutin Vračević, Nataša Todorović, Nataša Milić, Dejana Stanisavljević