“It’s Been Ugly”: A Large-Scale Qualitative Study into the Difficulties Frontline Doctors Faced across Two Waves of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Sophie Harris, Elizabeth Jenkinson, Edward Carlton, Tom Roberts and Jo Daniels
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Sophie Harris: Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, UK
Elizabeth Jenkinson: Health and Social Sciences, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK
Edward Carlton: North Bristol NHS Trust, Bristol BS10 5NB, UK
Tom Roberts: North Bristol NHS Trust, Bristol BS10 5NB, UK
Jo Daniels: Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, UK

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 24, 1-19

Abstract: This study aimed to gain an uncensored insight into the most difficult aspects of working as a frontline doctor across successive COVID-19 pandemic waves. Data collected by the parent study (CERA) was analysed using conventional content analysis. Participants comprised frontline doctors who worked in emergency, anaesthetic, and intensive care medicine in the UK and Ireland during the COVID-19 pandemic ( n = 1379). All seniority levels were represented, 42.8% of the sample were male, and 69.2% were white. Four themes were identified with nine respective categories (in parentheses): (1) I’m not a COVID hero, I’m COVID cannon fodder (exposed and unprotected, “a kick in the teeth”); (2) the relentlessness and pervasiveness of COVID (“no respite”, “shifting sands”); (3) the ugly truths of the frontline (“inhumane” care, complex team dynamics); (4) an overwhelmed system exacerbated by COVID (overstretched and under-resourced, constant changes and uncertainty, the added hinderance of infection control measures). Findings reflect the multifaceted challenges faced after successive pandemic waves; basic wellbeing needs continue to be neglected and the emotional impact is further pronounced. Steps are necessary to mitigate the repeated trauma exposure of frontline doctors as COVID-19 becomes endemic and health services attempt to recover with inevitable long-term sequelae.

Keywords: COVID-19; frontline workers; healthcare workers; qualitative research; moral injury (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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