Compassion Fatigue among Professionals Working with Individuals Who Use Stimulants

Tuesday, Jul 15, 2025 • 12 pm to 1 pm

Virtual

Training Sessions

Abstract

Working with individuals who use stimulants—such as methamphetamine, cocaine, and prescription amphetamines—presents unique clinical, emotional, and relational challenges. High-intensity behaviors, chronic relapse cycles, and frequent co-occurring mental health issues can leave helping professionals feeling emotionally drained, frustrated, or helpless. Over time, these dynamics may contribute to compassion fatigue, particularly when compounded by systemic barriers, stigma, and limited access to effective treatment resources.

This presentation explores the specific ways in which working with stimulant users impacts the emotional resilience of professionals across healthcare, behavioral health, harm reduction, and social services. Attendees will learn how stimulant-related dynamics can amplify the risk of compassion fatigue, and how to identify early warning signs in themselves and their teams. The session also emphasizes practical, field-informed strategies for cultivating sustainable empathy, setting boundaries, and creating support systems within organizations that serve stimulant-using populations.

The goal is to move beyond "just surviving" and toward a model of sustainable, trauma-informed, and compassionate care—for both clients and the professionals who serve them.

Objectives

  • Define compassion fatigue and describe how it uniquely presents in professionals working with people who use stimulants.
  • Understand the behavioral, emotional, and relational challenges associated with stimulant use and their impact on provider well-being.
  • Recognize how systemic stigma, relapse cycles, and client volatility can erode professional empathy and contribute to burnout and disengagement.
  • Identify early signs of compassion fatigue in themselves and colleagues through self-assessment and observation.
  • Apply trauma-informed, harm reduction-aligned strategies to support emotional regulation, boundary setting, and professional sustainability.
  • Design a personal or organizational approach to reducing compassion fatigue and increasing staff resilience when working in stimulant-impacted environments.

Accreditation

PHYSICIAN (CME)

The University of Pittsburgh designates this live activity for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

NURSING (CNE)

A maximum of 1.0 nursing contact hours will be awarded. Participants will be able to claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the program.

SOCIAL WORK

As a Jointly Accredited Organization, University of Pittsburgh is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit. University of Pittsburgh maintains responsibility for this course. Social workers completing this course receive 1.0 continuing education credits.

Psychologist (APA)

Continuing Education (CE) credits for psychologists are provided through the co-sponsorship of the American Psychological Association (APA) Office of Continuing Education in Psychology (CEP). The APA CEP Office maintains responsibility for the content of the programs.

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