Professional Quality of Life and Mental Health Outcomes among Health Care Workers Exposed to Sars-Cov-2 (Covid-19)

Rodolfo Buselli, Martina Corsi, Sigrid Baldanzi, Martina Chiumiento, Elena Del Lupo, Valerio Dell'Oste, Carlo Antonio Bertelloni, Gabriele Massimetti, Liliana Dell’Osso, Alfonso Cristaudo and Claudia Carmassi
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Rodolfo Buselli: Occupational Health Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Via Paradisa 2, 56124 Cisanello (Pisa), Italy
Martina Corsi: Occupational Health Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Via Paradisa 2, 56124 Cisanello (Pisa), Italy
Sigrid Baldanzi: Occupational Health Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Via Paradisa 2, 56124 Cisanello (Pisa), Italy
Martina Chiumiento: Occupational Health Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Via Paradisa 2, 56124 Cisanello (Pisa), Italy
Elena Del Lupo: Occupational Health Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Via Paradisa 2, 56124 Cisanello (Pisa), Italy
Valerio Dell'Oste: Psychiatric Clinic, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Via Roma 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy
Carlo Antonio Bertelloni: Psychiatric Clinic, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Via Roma 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy
Gabriele Massimetti: Psychiatric Clinic, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Via Roma 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy
Liliana Dell’Osso: Psychiatric Clinic, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Via Roma 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy
Alfonso Cristaudo: Occupational Health Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Via Paradisa 2, 56124 Cisanello (Pisa), Italy
Claudia Carmassi: Psychiatric Clinic, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Via Roma 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 17, 1-12

Abstract: The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a global pandemic spreading worldwide, and Italy represented the first European country involved. Healthcare workers (HCWs) facing COVID-19 pandemic represented an at-risk population for new psychosocial COVID-19 strain and consequent mental health symptoms. The aim of the present study was to identify the possible impact of working contextual and personal variables (age, gender, working position, years of experience, proximity to infected patients) on professional quality of life, represented by compassion satisfaction (CS), burnout, and secondary traumatization (ST), in HCWs facing COVID-19 emergency. Further, two multivariable linear regression analyses were fitted to explore the association of mental health selected outcomes, anxiety and depression, with some personal and working characteristics that are COVID-19-related. A sample of 265 HCWs of a major university hospital in central Italy was consecutively recruited at the outpatient service of the Occupational Health Department during the acute phase of COVID-19 pandemic. HCWs were assessed by Professional Quality of Life-5 (ProQOL-5), the Nine-Item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and the Seven-Item Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7) to evaluate, respectively, CS, burnout, ST, and symptoms of depression and anxiety. Females showed higher ST than males, while frontline staff and healthcare assistants reported higher CS rather than second-line staff and physicians, respectively. Burnout and ST, besides some work or personal variables, were associated to depressive or anxiety scores. The COVID-19 pandemic represents a new working challenge for HCWs and intervention strategies to prevent burnout and ST to reduce the risk of adverse mental health outcomes are needed.

Keywords: COVID-19; healthcare workers (HCWs); professional quality of life (ProQOL-5); compassion satisfaction (CS); burnout; secondary traumatization (ST) (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (30)

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