The mental health of doctors during the COVID-19 pandemic

Galbraith, Niall; Boyda, David; McFeeters, Danielle; Hassan, Tariq

doi:10.1192/bjb.2020.44

Cited by 290 publications

(277 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…During the early stages of the Covid-19 epidemic, many researchers reported the need to provide interventions to support the mental health of people affected by the Covid-19 crisis [ 15 , 16 , 19 , 87 , 88 ], in particular for healthcare workers [ 18 , 89 , 90 , 91 ] and patients with the Covid-19 infection [ 92 , 93 ]. For this purpose, many scholars suggested the use of mindfulness interventions [ 94 , 95 , 96 , 97 ]. However, studies assessing the impact of interventions that supported mental health in the early stages of the Covid-19 related crisis are very limited.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Positive Impact of Mindfulness Meditation on Mental Health of Female Teachers during the COVID-19 Outbreak in Italy

Matiz

Fabbro

Paschetto

et al. 2020

IJERPH

164

133

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The Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent public health measures were shown to impact negatively on people’s mental health. In particular, women were reported to be at higher risk than men of developing symptoms of stress/anxiety/depression, and resilience was considered a key factor for positive mental health outcomes. In the present study, a sample of Italian female teachers (n = 66, age: 51.5 ± 7.9 years) was assessed with self-report instruments one month before and one month after the start of the Covid-19 lockdown: mindfulness skills, empathy, personality profiles, interoceptive awareness, psychological well-being, emotional distress and burnout levels were measured. Meanwhile, they received an 8-week Mindfulness-Oriented Meditation (MOM) course, through two group meetings and six individual video-lessons. Based on baseline personality profiles, analyses of variance were performed in a low-resilience (LR, n = 32) and a high-resilience (HR, n = 26) group. The LR and HR groups differed at baseline in most of the self-report measures. Pre–post MOM significant improvements were found in both groups in anxiety, depression, affective empathy, emotional exhaustion, psychological well-being, interoceptive awareness, character traits and mindfulness levels. Improvements in depression and psychological well-being were higher in the LR vs. HR group. We conclude that mindfulness-based training can effectively mitigate the psychological negative consequences of the Covid-19 outbreak, helping in particular to restore well-being in the most vulnerable individuals.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Positive Impact of Mindfulness Meditation on Mental Health of Female Teachers during the COVID-19 Outbreak in Italy

Matiz

Fabbro

Paschetto

et al. 2020

IJERPH

164

133

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Some studies reported about the importance of team climate (Maunder et al 2003(Maunder et al , 2004(Maunder et al , 2006Khee et al 2004;Lee et al 2005) because it can reduce the negative effects of social isolation (Maunder et al 2003(Maunder et al , 2004(Maunder et al , 2006. In fact, also during the COVID-19 outbreak many HCWs decided to isolate themselves to not infect their families (Lee et al 2005;Fichtel and Kaufman 2020).…”

Section: Person-directed Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The psychosocial impact of flu influenza pandemics on healthcare workers and lessons learnt for the COVID-19 emergency: a rapid review

Barello

Falcó‐Pegueroles

Rosa

et al. 2020

Int J Public Health

124

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Objectives During a pandemic, healthcare workers (HCWs) are essential to the health system response. Based on our knowledge, little information is available regarding the psychosocial impact on HCWs or interventions for supporting them during pandemics. Therefore, the study aimed to assess available literature on perceived stress and psychological responses to influenza pandemics in HCWs and identify implications for healthcare practice and future research. Methods This is a rapid review of the literature. The review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Results Across all the studies—both qualitative and quantitative—HCWs working during the epidemic reported frequent concerns regarding their own health and the fear of infecting their families, friends and colleagues. Moreover, social isolation, uncertainty, fears of stigmatization and reluctance to work or considering absenteeism were frequently reported. Moreover, many studies highlighted a high prevalence of high levels of stress, anxiety and depression symptoms, which could have long-term psychological implications in HCWs. Conclusions This rapid review offers an overview of the major concerns regarding HCWs’ psychosocial well-being and possible preventive strategies, which could be useful for the current COVID-19 outbreak and similar future pandemics. Studies suggested to invest on preventive psychological, social, family and physical support and to guaranteeing reasonable work conditions and others in order to protect HCWs from the long-lasting psychological effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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“…This unpleasant emotion can be amplified by social disparities as well as by the spread of stigma associated with COVID-19, affecting not only those newly diagnosed with the disease but also health care providers. As in many cases, the source of COVID-19 cannot be easily traced, and social stigma may arise toward people who have the most contact with patients (Galbraith et al, 2020). Thus, nurses, doctors, and health care providers as a whole may be perceived by other people as "unsafe" because of their job and thereby become victims of avoidant behaviors.…”

Section: The Shame Of Covid-19mentioning

confidence: 99%