Compassion fatigue among emergency medical services personnel: an integrative review of contributing factors and consequences
Emergency Care Journal · 2026-10-08 · Systematic review
Abstract
This integrative review focuses on the phenomenon of compassion fatigue in Emergency Medical Services (EMS). Specifically, it explores the available literature on the causes of compassion fatigue and its impact on personal well-being, performance, and the quality of care delivered by emergency medical services professionals. An integrative literature review was conducted following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Relevant studies were searched using PubMed, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, ProQuest, and EBSCO/CINAHL electronic databases, and after further analysis 13 were selected for review. A qualitative approach involving content and thematic analyses was used to identify repeated patterns. This integrative review was carried out from January 15 to June 30, 2026. In total, there were thirteen (13) articles that met the requirements for inclusion in this paper. Five major themes were found: trauma experience, occupation-related stressors, self-criticism, accumulation of emotional burden, and work environment. All of the mentioned issues had negative consequences for personal welfare and job performance. Major outcomes were poor psychological well-being, dissatisfaction, deterioration of care standards, increased risk of experiencing burnout, and detachment. Despite the few studies focused specifically on EMS providers, the literature indicates that compassion fatigue is quite prevalent. This review not only underscores its significant contributions but also brings out issues that may arise within the institution when implementing this initiative. With such findings, there is an increased need for further research to validate the effectiveness of this initiative and address future challenges.
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