Impact of COVID‐19 on the mental health in a cohort of Italian rehabilitation healthcare workers

Abstract

The COVID‐19 pandemic has had a strong impact on healthcare workers (HCWs), affecting their physical and mental health. In Italy, HCWs have been among the first exposed to unprecedented pressure, dealing with large numbers of infections during the first pandemic wave. However, the severe psychological consequences on HCWs find little evidence in the literature, especially in terms of comparison to the status quo ante pandemic. The aim of this study was to provide an assessment of the mental health burden in a cohort of Italian HCWs during the COVID‐19 pandemic, comparing their condition with that before the emergency, to direct the promotion of mental well‐being among HCWs worldwide. In this retrospective study, we included physicians, physical therapists, and nurses working in the Respiratory Intensive Care Unit, Neurology Unit, and Rehabilitation Unit from a Southern Italy University Hospital. All study participants underwent a battery of psychological tests, aimed at verifying their state of mental health during the COVID‐19 emergency and before it. Depressive, anxiety, and burnout symptoms were assessed using the following questionnaires: Maslach Burnout Inventory, Patient Health Questionnaire‐9 (PHQ‐9), and General Anxiety Disorder‐7. Depressive, anxiety, and burnout clinical relevance symptoms were present in HCWs during the COVID‐19 pandemic more than those before the emergency. Fifty percent of the HCWs obtained a score clinically significant during the emergency. Moreover, a depersonalization factor showed a statistically significant increase in average scores ( p < 0.0001). The PHQ‐9 scale showed that 47.1% of the operators reported depressive state presence. The number of operators scoring above the cut‐off for the anxiety scale tripled during the emergency ( p < 0.0001). The female gender conferred greater risks for depression. Taken together, the findings of this study showed that our sample of Italian HCWs showed a greater risk for depression, anxiety, and stress during the COVID‐19 pandemic. These data might be a starting point to plan mental health monitoring and prevention programs for HCWs, thus ensuring patients receive the best possible care performances even during healthcare crises such as the current pandemic.

Incidence of COVID-19 reinfection among Midwestern healthcare employees

“…Of note, healthcare workers represented in this dataset are much more likely to be female, reflecting the fact that more women typically work in healthcare roles; however, as demonstrated in the tables, there was no statistically significant difference in reinfection or recurrence by sex. Given the increased odds of recurrence and reinfection noted in this study, special precautions and protections should prioritize clinical healthcare workers as they shoulder a large portion of disease, which is negatively affecting not only their physical health but mental health as well [ 28 ]. To start, individuals in high-exposure groups should continue to abide by previous public health precautions, irrespective of policy easement.…”

Psychological Distress and Work Environment Perception by Physical Therapists from Southern Italy during COVID-19 Pandemic: The C.A.L.A.B.R.I.A Study

“…Other recent studies have showed a high prevalence of rehabilitative healthcare professionals’ burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic [ 35 , 36 ]. However, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first study investigating the impact that the psychosocial work environment might have on frustration perceived by physical therapists.…”

“…Physical therapists and all health care workers are among individuals with the highest risk of contracting the virus, considering that they are under an overwhelming psychological pressure, requiring manual contact with patients [ 35 , 41 , 43 , 48 ]. It has been proposed that focusing on lack of basic need satisfaction alone may be ineffective in adequately describing how negative work-related social factors impact employees’ psychological needs [ 17 , 41 ].…”

The Psychological Impact of COVID-19 on Healthcare Workers in Saudi Arabia: A Year Later Into the Pandemic

“…Unlike prior outbreaks, the COVID-19 pandemic could have a potentially long-term psychological impact on both the general public and HCWs. One year following the start of the pandemic, few studies have been conducted to assess the psychological impact among HCWs using the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21) questionnaire (9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15). Also, few longitudinal studies have been conducted to evaluate the long-term impact of the pandemic on health care providers (16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22).…”