Burnout in Health and Social Care: Why It Happens and What We Can Do

Working in health and social care offers the opportunity to make a profound difference in people’s lives, building meaningful connections and contributing to the well-being of individuals and communities. Alongside these rewards, the role can also present challenges, from long hours and emotionally sensitive conversations to time-critical decisions and the ongoing responsibility to deliver the highest standard of care and support.

Burnout isn’t just feeling tired after a busy week. It’s what happens when stress becomes the norm and support doesn’t keep up. And right now, it’s something too many people in the sector are quietly living with.

The good news? Burnout is not a personal failing, and it’s not inevitable. In this blog, we’ll explore what burnout actually is, why it’s so common in care settings, how to spot the early signs, and what both individuals and organisations can do to tackle it.

Whether you’re supporting people day-to-day or leading a team, these insights and strategies are here to help you protect your own well-being, and the well-being of those around you.

Understanding Burnout

With the syndrome first entering discussion in the 1970s, “burnout” is a long-lasting state of emotional, mental and physical exhaustion. It often comes with feeling less empathy or care for others, and a drop in how well someone performs at work. A widely used tool, the Maslach Burnout Inventory, measures these dimensions of emotional exhaustion and low personal accomplishment.

In the UK, burnout is widespread in health and social care as the 2024 NHS Staff Survey found that 41% of staff report feeling unwell due to work‑related stress, and fewer than half feel they can balance the demands of their role. Among nurses and midwives, nearly 40% report often or always feeling burned out. Among ambulance crews, more than 50% show moderate-to-high burnout, and nearly 90% report high levels of dissociation. Another UK survey found one in three NHS doctors so exhausted that patient care may be compromised, as 69% said fatigue had or could impair their ability to treat patients, and even 26% indicated a patient was harmed or nearly harmed because of it.

Why It’s Prevalent

Burnout emerges from a combination of overwhelming demands and insufficient resources, known as the Job Demands–Resources (JD‑R) model. When job demands (e.g. long hours, emotional labour, trauma exposure, understaffing) outweigh available resources (e.g. supervision, manageable caseloads, control), strain builds up and burnout follows.

In the NHS and social care:

Staff shortages and unrealistic workloads are common, with only 34% of staff believing that there are enough colleagues to do the job properly.

Dealing with strong emotions, facing trauma (like 999 call handlers handling tough emergencies), and working long, stressful shifts all play a big part. A recent report revealed 27% of ambulance control room staff have quit over three years, and staff take on average 33 sick days a year, driven by severe stress and trauma exposure.

The emotional toll of “corridor care”, ethical dilemmas and degraded workplace culture amplify fatigue and moral distress.

The Impact Beyond Personal Burnout

Burnout bears a heavy toll on individuals, teams, and patient care:

Physical health issues like headaches, insomnia, and high blood pressure, as well as poor mental health, withdrawal, irritability, and a sense of feeling “stuck.”

Team morale declines as empathy fatigue spreads, leading to poorer communication and potentially, more errors.

Care quality suffers, with increased risk of adverse events when burned‑out staff provide less vigilant, less engaged care.

GMC reports show nearly 20% of doctors are considering leaving the UK or quitting entirely, citing a lack of career progression and burnout. This is all around the same time as almost a third of NHS staff took time off for mental health reasons.

Spotting the Signs Early

Recognising the signs of burnout early can help prevent escalation:

Emotional signs

Chronic emotional exhaustion or detachment

Diminished empathy or compassion fatigue

Physical signs

Persistent fatigue

Insomnia

Headaches

Lowered immunity

Behavioural signs

Withdrawal from colleagues or service users

Irritability, reduced performance and/or cynicism

Feeling “stuck” or helpless

These symptoms don’t happen overnight; they build slowly over time. As the Mental Health Foundation highlights, burnout often shows up in subtle ways first, like becoming increasingly withdrawn, avoiding responsibilities, or feeling numb. Left unchecked, it can lead to serious mental and physical health problems. Early recognition and support are key to reversing that spiral before it takes hold.

Why Burnout Is a Systemic Issue

Though sometimes it might feel isolating, burnout is not an individual weakness. The myth that those who can “tough it out” should do so ignores the systemic pressures contributing to stress. Frequently, the root causes are structural, such as insufficient staffing, unclear roles, poor leadership and a lack of support.

A UK study highlights that support at work, especially from colleagues and peers, makes a big difference in reducing burnout, more so than just relying on individual resilience.

What You Can Do to Stay Well

While systemic change is essential, we can also learn to build up our own resilience to external factors by:

Setting healthy boundaries and learning to say no when overwhelmed

Taking full annual leave, guilt‑free

Engaging in supervision, support groups, or counselling

Developing recovery habits like prioritising sleep, exercising regularly, journalling, practising mindfulness or meditating

Having team debriefings after distressing events

Remember, these steps aren’t selfish; they’re recovery strategies that allow people to continue delivering care sustainably.

What Employers Can Do to Support Staff

We can do what we can to develop resilience, but organisations also play a big part in preventing workplace burnout. They should:

Ensure they set realistic workloads and maintain adequate staffing levels

Build regular reflective practice and mental health check-in sessions

Promote psychological safety as staff should feel able to speak up about stress without stigma or repercussion

Offer impactful well-being initiatives like counselling, peer networks, and flexible scheduling

Train managers to recognise burnout indicators and act supportively

NHS Employers, referencing The King’s Fund research, highlight that managers who support staff proactively can significantly reduce burnout rates and improve morale and retention – a positive outcome for everyone!

Recovery, Reconnection and Looking Ahead

Recovery from burnout is possible when individual efforts are combined with supportive structural changes. When workloads are reduced, emotional support restored, and organisational culture becomes compassionate, many professionals renew their commitment and resilience.

Even sharing stories of recovery can help to break stigma, whether that’s via reflective practice or through staff networks. By valuing the people behind the care, organisations can proactively rebuild morale, strengthen retention, and enhance quality of care.

There are also UK-based peer support groups like Doctors in Distress that offer webinars, workshops and confidential peer support for medical professionals to reconnect emotionally and reduce isolation.

In Summary

Burnout in the UK health and social care sector is incredibly common, multi‑dimensional, and symptomatic of industry strain, not personal failure. While stress is widespread, burnout delivers persistent exhaustion, reduced empathy and a personal and professional breakdown. That’s why systemic change, combined with individual self-care, creates tangible solutions.

If you’re experiencing signs of burnout, please talk to your peers or your supervisor. If you lead a team, make sure to check in with your staff, manage workloads fairly and offer real emotional support should they need it. Together, we must value people behind care and invest in systems that support sustainability and humanity.