Validation of the scale compassion fatigue inventory in health professional Spanish-speaking: a cross-sectional study

To validate the Compassion Fatigue Inventory in Spanish-speaking health personnel, its psychometric properties were tested, and the influencing factors were investigated.

This was a cross-sectional validation study. Information was collected through a survey of 733 nurses, physician and medical residents using the Compassion fatigue Inventory (CFI), Secondary Traumatic Stress Questionnaire (CETS), The physician burnout syndrome scale (PhBS), the quality-of-life index (SQL -sp) and the reduced Moral Stress Scale (MMDHPr). The psychometric properties of the CFI were tested via exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and internal consistency analysis. The final version of the translated CFI was correlated with other scales.

An EFA was performed to evaluate the translated CFI, resulting in 15 items in three dimensions, as reported in the literature: reduced compassion, social life, and workplace. The CFA showed good fit indices and psychometric values (Cronbach´s alpha = 0.87, Omega = 0.87, Comparative Fit Index = 0.99, Tucker Lewis = 0.99, root mean square error of approximation = 0.045, Standardized Root Mean Square Residual = 0.05). The CFI had a negative correlation with the SQL-sp and a positive correlation with the other subscales. Work experience is predictive of a small reduction in CFI scores.

The adaptation of the CFI in a sample of Latino health professionals shows satisfactory psychometric indices in the evaluation of compassion fatigue and can be proposed as a specific inventory to differentiate compassion fatigue from other occupational syndromes.