“If you are in the higher range, you probably derive a good deal of professional satisfaction from your position. If your scores are below 23, you may either find problems with your job, or there may be some other reason— for example, you might derive your satisfaction from activities other than your job.”

“If your score is below 23, this probably reflects positive feelings about your ability to be effective in your work. If you score above 41, you may wish to think about what at work makes you feel like you are not effective in your position. Your score may reflect your mood; perhaps you were having a “bad day” or are in need of some time off. If the high score persists or if it is reflective of other worries, it may be a cause for concern.”

“If your score is above 43, you may want to take some time to think about what at work may be frightening to you or if there is some other reason for the elevated score. While higher scores do not mean that you do have a problem, they are an indication that you may want to examine how you feel about your work and your work environment. You may wish to discuss this with your supervisor, a colleague, or a health care professional.”

“This is the most positive result. This result represents a person who receives positive reinforcement from their work. They carry no significant concerns about being “bogged down” or inability to be efficacious in their work—either as an individual or within their organization. They do not suffer any noteworthy fears resulting from their work. These persons may benefit from engagement, opportunities for continuing education, and other opportunities to grow in their position. They are likely good influences on their colleagues and their organization. They are probably liked by their patients, who seek out their assistance.”

“People who score high on burnout, in any combination with the other scales, are at risk as individuals and may also put their organizations in high-risk situations. Burnout is a feeling of inefficacy. In the work setting, this may be a result of personal or organizational factors. The prototype burnout is associated with high workloads and poor system function. A person may feel as if there is “nothing they can do” to make things better. It is likely they are disengaged from their patients, even though this is not associated with any fear as a result of engagement with their patients. People suffering from burnout often benefit from taking time off. They may also benefit from changing their routine within the organization. Organizations that have many people with burnout should seriously consider their organizational system and the use of their human capital to identify pitfalls in the system and ways to support people in accomplishing business goals and work.”

“People who make these scores are typically overwhelmed by a negative experience at work as characterized by fear. If this fear is related to an event that happened to the person directly, such as having their life endangered as a result of participating in a dangerous rescue, or if they experienced a traumatic event such as sexual violence by a colleague, these are not secondary experiences. These are direct exposures to dangerous events. However, if the person’s fear is related to taking care of others who were directly in harm’s way, this is secondary traumatic stress. These people are likely to benefit from immediate treatment for traumatic stress and, when present, depression. Because they are neutral in regard to their feelings of inefficacy at work, or feelings of pleasure associated with their work, consider focusing on the fear-related work experiences. Countering the fear might include changing the case-load mix, the work environment (like assigning work with colleagues whom they trust), or introducing other safety measures.”

“This combination is typically unique to high-risk situations such as working in areas of war and civil violence. People who score in this range are often highly effective at their work because they feel their work matters. However, they have a private self that is extremely fearful because of their engagement with others. Some fear is accurate and appropriate in high-risk situation. However, high secondary traumatic stress is marked by thoughts, feelings, and memories of others’ traumatic experiences mixed with their own experiences. This can be particularly difficult to understand when the experiences of those to whom the person provides help are similar to his or her own. Knowing that others have been traumatized by the same type of situations in which the person finds him or herself has the potential to change the person’s interpretation of the event.

People with scores like this typically benefit from encouragement to build on their feelings of altruism and thoughts that they are contributing to the greater good. Simultaneously, their fears and fear-related symptoms should be addressed. Depression is theoretically unlikely given their high feelings of satisfaction. At times, changes in the work environment coupled with additional supportive supervision may alleviate the PTSD-like symptoms. At other times, therapy or medication or both may be a good alternative.”

This combination is seemingly the most distressing. Not only does the person feel overwhelmed and useless in the work setting, they are literally frightened by it. People with this combination of scores are probably helped most by being removed from their current work setting. Assessment for PTSD and depression is important. Treatment for either or both may have positive outcomes, but a return to an unmodified work situation is unlikely to be fruitful. However, if the person is willing, it may be that he or she can change the efficacy by addressing their own skills and systems (such as additional training) or by working with the organization to identify a reorganized work assignment.