From lionizing to protecting health care workers during and after COVID‐19—systems solutions for human tragedies

Abstract

During the COVID‐19 pandemic, health care workers (HCWs) have been lauded as heroes, yet both before and during the pandemic, they lacked the protections needed to keep them safe. We summarize data on HCW infections and deaths during previous epidemics, the costs of the failure to protect them, and provide recommendations for strengthening HCW protections by investments in and implementation of infection prevention and control and water, sanitation, and hygiene programs, training and career development, and national and global monitoring of HCW infections. We must move from placing individuals at undue risk to accepting collective responsibility and accountability for the well‐being of our HCWs and take concrete actions to protect HCWs who risk their lives to protect patients and populations.

Healthcare Workers' Perceptions and Medically Approved COVID-19 Infection Risk: Understanding the Mental Health Dimension of the Pandemic. A German Hospital Case Study

“…Finally, our optimal-case scenario shows low levels of infection compared to other countries ( 3 , 16 , 18 , 24 , 26 , 68 ), as well as within Germany ( 17 , 47 , 57 , 69 ). As highlighted in the introduction, this scenario is linked to health system characteristics and resources and the optimal conditions may not easily be translated to other contexts.…”

Healthcare workers’ perceptions and medically approved COVID-19 infection risk: understanding the mental health dimension of the pandemic. A German hospital case study

“…Finally, our optimal-case scenario shows low levels of infection compared to other countries [3,16,18,24,26,68], as well as within Germany [17,47,57,69]. These optimal conditions may not easily be translated to other contexts, yet there are some important lessons emerging from our case study in relation to health workforce governance and new approaches to organisational protection measures.…”

“…Investment in the health workforce and prioritisation of HCW needs in health policy and pandemic recovery plans is therefore called for by WHO (1,2), the European Commission (EC) (3,4), public health organisations (5) and researchers (6,7), including greater attention to the mental health requirements of the health workforce (8,9,10,11,12,13). Data gathered during the pandemic in different regions of the world revealed a high risk of COVID-19 infection and death among HCWs, as well as an increase in stress and burn-out syndromes in many health professional groups (14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23,24,25,26,27,28,29). Individual stories of HCWs furthermore illustrate the severity of mental health risks and extremely high workload (30,31).…”

Managing COVID-19 in an Australian designated isolation facility: Implications for current and future healthcare crises

“…[1, 2] Acknowledgment that their health and safety is crucial – for workers themselves, the continuing and safe care of their patients, and control of outbreaks,[3] – has not manifested into concrete measures that minimise HCWs’ risk of mental health issues,[4-6] infection and death from COVID-19. [7]…”

“…[1,2] Acknowledgment that their health and safety is crucial -for workers themselves, the continuing and safe care of their patients, and control of outbreaks, [3] -has not manifested into concrete measures that minimise HCWs' risk of mental health issues, [4][5][6] infection and death from COVID-19. [7] Nearing 24 months since WHO's declaration, countries worldwide continue to struggle with adequate reliable health care in the face of the pandemic. [8,9] Pandemic-distinct challenges, known but some elusive to overcoming, include matters related to adequate supply and effective use of personal protective equipment (PPE), [10,11] the safety and well-being of an appropriately skilled health workforce, [3,12,13] workplace structures, practices and policies that shape the experiences and capabilities of HCWs [14,15] and an overarching adaptable decision making and management approach.…”