Overview

Dr Gordon Parker (2022) in his seminal work: Burnout: A guide to identifying burnout and pathways to recovery provided a new diagnostic tool and posited the thesis that for many people who experience burnout, it can be personality based.  In the first half of this presentation, we will explore the symptoms and diagnosis of burnout.  There will then be a focus on how and why burnout occurs in the brain and body, how it is identified and what diagnostic or otherwise tools are available. There will also be some exploration of how there is some differentiation from anxiety, trauma and depression.

The presentation will then focus on the recovery process, which requires a particular type of intervention, with rest as essential as well as a detailed plan.  Burnout intervention can break from conventional supportive listening (especially when the person in question cannot hear you).

Part of the fascinating recovery journey is to uncover core drivers, coping mechanisms and possible past traumas that might have contributed to their burnout in the first place.  Why do people keep pushing on?  This will be in the context of understanding the range of factors that contribute to burnout, including shame. The importance of boundaries, self-compassion and assessment of the job/match fit will form the exploration of the recovery process.

In the second half of the presentation, there will be focus on how core coping mechanisms are formed and why it is important to understand and uncover them and eventually relate to ourselves with greater self-compassion (and why we struggle with this). This component will also explore how we relate to others and ourselves from a Transactional Analysis perspective: Parent, Child and Adult. There is flexibility in the day to shift focus at any stage to having more of a safer environment to attend to ourselves as practitioners.

The style of workshop will be experiential, interactive and didactic - people will have a chance to explore their own relationship with burnout and self-care and also be guided in the best way to intervene and treat people who present with burnout.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this event, participants will have a good understanding of the following:

• The signs and symptoms associated with burnout
• Exploration of shame and stigma associated with people experiencing burnout.
• Understand why people burnout. Look at burnout continuum.
• Diagnosis:
  • Utilising Gordon Parkers Burnout inventory
  • How people self-diagnose and what we do with this
  • What burnout is not
  • Connection with other diagnoses and trauma
  • Multiple burnouts?
  • Findings of ‘Absolutely Cooked’ podcast research so far
• What is needed in burnout treatment and the preferred option of burnout prevention and early intervention - understanding the importance of what is needed outside of session for recovery
• A psychodynamic exploration of what drives people into burnout and how we uncover these core drivers
• A psychodynamic understanding of how we relate to ourselves and how our self-talk matters. What is self compassion and self-soothing
• Greater understanding of connection with boundaries and self-care.
• What is needed in our role in ongoing burnout recovery

Presenter(s)

Mr. Marcel Koper

About the presenter(s)

Marcel Koper has been a Mental Health professional/therapist and supervisor for over 25 years across a variety of disciplines. His Masters thesis was on the Effectiveness of Clinical Supervision and he subsequently became involved in training supervisors for many years. He continues to be intently interested in supporting people to become better supervisors and practitioners. Marcel experienced serious burnout in 2004/5 and this began his interest in helping others to recover from burnout. In 2022 and 2024 Marcel hosted webinars with Dr Gordon Parker on the topic of burnout, an area in which he has developed extensive expertise. His current drive is to help other practitioners/ supervisors become more adept at identifying and treating burnout. He is currently formulating a research-based podcast series on burnout recovery called “Absolutely Cooked”. Marcel believes in the primacy of self-care and self-compassion and is driven by the notion that if he helps one person, then he is then helping all those that person comes into contact with. Marcel's style is relational, curious, permission-asking, reflective and reflexive.

Notes

Registration includes morning and afternoon teas as well as lunch.

Target Audience

This event is ideal for psychologists and all mental health practitioners at all levels of experience.

Please note:

• Parking is available at Eastland Shopping Centre and the venue will provide $10 parking vouchers for the day.
• This is a Member Groups event. All communication will be sent to the registrants’ registered email address. This includes event reminders with details (such as the venue details) and any pre-event or post-event resources, if provided by the facilitators.
• A post-event email will be sent within two weeks of the event’s completion to each registrant’s registered email address. This email will include the CPD certificate, and any additional resources shared during the session.

Duration of Access

This event will not be recorded.

CPD

It is up to attendees to assess and determine how learning from this event aligns with the requirements of their learning plan. The providers accordingly do not make any representation that the event counts towards attendees’ CPD learning requirements. If an attendee determines themselves that the learning they complete aligns to their learning plan, then they can decide to count those hours towards their CPD requirements for the registration cycle.

The information in this presentation has been prepared in good faith and for educational purposes only. Therefore, the information is general in nature and should not be relied upon in the treatment of any condition and you should seek your own independent professional and/or legal advice concerning any specific issue. The APS accepts no responsibility for any errors, omissions or decisions relating to the information. The content should not be reproduced without permission or unless permitted by law.

If you are experiencing registration difficulties please contact APS Events Support.