Crisis management software helps prevent hotline burnout and keeps important crisis line workers on the job. As a hotline manager, having enough workers to take calls is crucial. In nonprofits, workers often have many duties, making this even tougher. So, keeping workers around is key for effective crisis hotline management.
Algorithms for hotline burnout prediction
HelplineSoftware.com teamed up with a local rape crisis center facing high advocate burnout, with one advocate burning out each month. Despite investigating data, staff couldn’t find clear answers. They noticed that those burning out worked fewer hotline hours, but couldn’t take any concrete actions to solve the issue. The problem persisted.
Our team at HelplineSoftware.com used our strong data science skills to tackle burnout issues. By analyzing data, we discovered why people were burning out and how to help. Thanks to our efforts, we created an algorithm that predicts who might burn out next.
The hotline burnout prediction algorithm worked
We released our system to the volunteer coordinator in a burnout prediction dashboard. Our algorithm had predicted that exactly one person was likely to burn out soon because they’d been on the way too many back-to-back hotline calls.
The system’s simple design lets the crisis coordinator quickly spot burnout risks. In just a month, one advocate handled 30 hours of back-to-back calls. The coordinator easily emailed the advocate, advising them to take a break to prevent burnout.
But it was too late
When they went to their inbox to send an email to the advocate they found an email from the advocate saying that they’ve burned out and had to quit.
Insights
Preventing hotline burnout is possible with the right tools. Reliable tracking of hotline calls, including who answers and call durations, is essential. With this data, you'll identify patterns in consecutive calls and talk times to address vicarious trauma effectively.
Burnout often stems from routing defaults that concentrate calls on the most reachable staff. The call routing workload guide(coming in 7 weeks) explains how to measure distribution and redesign fallbacks. For safety boundaries that protect staff from after-hours intrusion and harassment, see call routing privacy and staff safety(coming in 5 weeks).
We've found that data from client management systems also called "databases", or shift management systems is generally not reliable enough for burnout prediction. This is because the busier the advocate the more likely they are to delay or forget to fill out intake forms, and other paperwork.
Want to get ahead of hotline burnout
Does your agency want to get ahead of hotline burnout? Want a battle-tested solution that’s ready to go and minimize burnout at your agency? Please reach out via phone call, email, or book a meeting with our team. You can find our contact information on our Contact Us page.
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