The Need for Psychological Support of Health Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Influence on Their Work

Borja Nicolás Santana-López, Yeray Gabriel Santana-Padilla, María Desamparados Bernat-Adell, Jesús María González-Martín and Luciano Santana-Cabrera
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Borja Nicolás Santana-López: Intensive Care Unit, Hospital Universitario de Gran Canaria Doctor Negrín, 35010 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
Yeray Gabriel Santana-Padilla: Emergency Surgery Unit, Complejo Hospitalario Universitario Insular Materno-Infantil de Gran Canaria, 35016 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
María Desamparados Bernat-Adell: Nursing Department, Universitat Jaume I, 12006 Castellón de la Plana, Spain
Jesús María González-Martín: Research Support Unit, Complejo Hospitalario Universitario Insular Materno-Infantil de Gran Canaria, 35016 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
Luciano Santana-Cabrera: Intensive Care Unit, Complejo Hospitalario Universitario Insular Materno-Infantil de Gran Canaria, 35016 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 15, 1-18

Abstract: The aim of this research was to analyze how the need for psychological support of health workers (HCWs) influenced the beliefs, perceptions and attitudes towards their work during the COVID-19 pandemic and to predict the need of psychological assistance. A descriptive transversal study was conducted based on a self-administered questionnaire distributed to health professionals working in the Canary Islands, Spain. The data were analyzed using Pearson’s chi-squared test and the linear trend test. The correlation test between ordinal and frequency variables was applied using Kendall’s Tau B. Multiple logistic regression was used to predict dichotomous variables. The sample included 783 health professionals: 17.8% ( n = 139) of them needed psychological or psychiatric support. Being redeployed to other services influenced the predisposition to request psychological help, and HCWs who required psychological support had more negative attitudes and perceptions towards their work. After five waves of COVID-19, these HCWs reported to be physically, psychologically and emotionally exhausted or even “burned out”; they did not feel supported by their institutions. The commitment of health personnel to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic decreased after the five waves, especially among professionals who required psychological support.

Keywords: mental health; health personnel; attitudes of health personnel; pandemics; COVID-19; emotions; work engagement (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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