IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v18y2021i5p2453-d509132.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A Scoping Review of Psychosocial Risks to Health Workers during the Covid-19 Pandemic

Author

Listed:
  • Paula Franklin

    (Occupational Safety & Health and Working Conditions Unit, European Trade Union Institute (ETUI), Boulevard du Roi Albert II, 1210 Brussels, Belgium)

  • Anna Gkiouleka

    (Department of Public Health & Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB1 8RN, UK)

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed health workers to a diverse set of hazards impacting their physical, psychological and social wellbeing. This review aims to provide an overview of the categories of the psychosocial risk factors and hazards affecting HCWs during the Covid-19 pandemic and the recommendations for prevention. We used the scoping review methodology to collate categories of psychosocial risks, the related health outcomes, interventions, and data gaps. The review was conducted on global peer-reviewed academic and authoritative grey literature, published between 1. January–26. October 2020; in total, 220 articles were included into the review and the subsequent analysis. Analysis of the extracted data found PSRs related to four sources: personal protective equipment (PPE), job content, work organisation, and social context. is. Women health workers and nurses reported worst health outcomes. Majority of the research to date concerns health workers in secondary care, while data on psychosocial risks at primary and community-based settings are scarce. However, the emerging research implies that the pandemic creates psychosocial risks also to non-clinical health workers. The intervention and mitigation measures address individual and organisational levels. Preventative and mitigating measures for social and societal risks—such as staff shortages, intersecting inequalities, and financial stressors require further research.

Suggested Citation

  • Paula Franklin & Anna Gkiouleka, 2021. "A Scoping Review of Psychosocial Risks to Health Workers during the Covid-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-20, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:5:p:2453-:d:509132
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/5/2453/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/5/2453/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lourdes Luceño-Moreno & Beatriz Talavera-Velasco & Yolanda García-Albuerne & Jesús Martín-García, 2020. "Symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress, Anxiety, Depression, Levels of Resilience and Burnout in Spanish Health Personnel during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(15), pages 1-29, July.
    2. Serena Barello & Anna Falcó-Pegueroles & Debora Rosa & Angela Tolotti & Guendalina Graffigna & Loris Bonetti, 2020. "The psychosocial impact of flu influenza pandemics on healthcare workers and lessons learnt for the COVID-19 emergency: a rapid review," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 65(7), pages 1205-1216, September.
    3. Cristina Di Tecco & Karina Nielsen & Monica Ghelli & Matteo Ronchetti & Ivan Marzocchi & Benedetta Persechino & Sergio Iavicoli, 2020. "Improving Working Conditions and Job Satisfaction in Healthcare: A Study Concept Design on a Participatory Organizational Level Intervention in Psychosocial Risks Management," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(10), pages 1-14, May.
    4. Gabriele Giorgi & Luigi Isaia Lecca & Federico Alessio & Georgia Libera Finstad & Giorgia Bondanini & Lucrezia Ginevra Lulli & Giulio Arcangeli & Nicola Mucci, 2020. "COVID-19-Related Mental Health Effects in the Workplace: A Narrative Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-22, October.
    5. Rodolfo Buselli & Sigrid Baldanzi & Martina Corsi & Martina Chiumiento & Elena Del Lupo & Claudia Carmassi & Liliana Dell’Osso & Alfonso Cristaudo, 2020. "Psychological Care of Health Workers during the COVID-19 Outbreak in Italy: Preliminary Report of an Occupational Health Department (AOUP) Responsible for Monitoring Hospital Staff Condition," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-15, June.
    6. Graziella Orrù & Francesca Marzetti & Ciro Conversano & Guido Vagheggini & Mario Miccoli & Rebecca Ciacchini & Eugenia Panait & Angelo Gemignani, 2021. "Secondary Traumatic Stress and Burnout in Healthcare Workers during COVID-19 Outbreak," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(1), pages 1-13, January.
    7. Baumann, Andrea & Hunsberger, Mabel & Crea-Arsenio, Mary & Akhtar-Danesh, Noori & Alameddine, Mohamad, 2018. "A government policy on full-time nursing employment in Ontario, Canada: An evaluation," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 122(2), pages 109-114.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Andrea Aguglia & Andrea Amerio & Alessandra Costanza & Nicolò Parodi & Francesco Copello & Gianluca Serafini & Mario Amore, 2021. "Hopelessness and Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms among Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Any Role for Mediating Variables?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(12), pages 1-10, June.
    2. Patricia Angeli da Silva Pigati & Renato Fraga Righetti & Victor Zuniga Dourado & Bruna Tiemi Cunha Nisiaymamoto & Beatriz Mangueira Saraiva-Romanholo & Iolanda de Fátima Lopes Calvo Tibério, 2022. "Resilience Improves the Quality of Life and Subjective Happiness of Physiotherapists during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(14), pages 1-22, July.
    3. Daniela Converso & Andreina Bruno & Vincenza Capone & Lara Colombo & Alessandra Falco & Teresa Galanti & Damiano Girardi & Gloria Guidetti & Sara Viotti & Barbara Loera, 2021. "Working during a Pandemic between the Risk of Being Infected and/or the Risks Related to Social Distancing: First Validation of the SAPH@W Questionnaire," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(11), pages 1-14, June.
    4. Grzegorz Józef Nowicki & Barbara Ślusarska & Bożena Zboina & Aneta Jędrzejewska & Marzena Kotus, 2022. "Factors Predicting Post-Traumatic Positive and Negative Psychological Changes Experienced by Nurses during a Pandemic COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(12), pages 1-18, June.
    5. Carla Barros & Pilar Baylina, 2024. "Disclosing Strain: How Psychosocial Risk Factors Influence Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Healthcare Workers Preceding and during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(5), pages 1-12, April.
    6. Paula Franklin & Wouter Zwysen & Agnieszka Piasna, 2022. "Temporal Dimensions of Job Quality and Gender: Exploring Differences in the Associations of Working Time and Health between Women and Men," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(8), pages 1-18, April.
    7. Mehwish Majeed & Muhammad Irshad & Jos Bartels, 2021. "The Interactive Effect of COVID-19 Risk and Hospital Measures on Turnover Intentions of Healthcare Workers: A Time-Lagged Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(20), pages 1-15, October.
    8. Mariela Loreto Lara-Cabrera & Moisés Betancort & C. Amparo Muñoz-Rubilar & Natalia Rodríguez Novo & Carlos De las Cuevas, 2021. "The Mediating Role of Resilience in the Relationship between Perceived Stress and Mental Health," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(18), pages 1-10, September.
    9. Lucio Ghio & Sara Patti & Giulia Piccinini & Cinzia Modafferi & Eleonora Lusetti & Massimo Mazzella & Massimo Del Sette, 2021. "Anxiety, Depression and Risk of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Health Workers: The Relationship with Burnout during COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(18), pages 1-13, September.
    10. Kurashvili Mari & Reinhold Karin & Järvis Marina, 2022. "Work Ability and Psychosocial Factors in Healthcare Settings During COVID-19 Pandemic – Specific Focus on Ageing Workers," Economics and Business, Sciendo, vol. 36(1), pages 164-178, January.
    11. Maryline Vivion & Nathalie Jauvin & Nektaria Nicolakakis & Mariève Pelletier & Marie-Claude Letellier & Caroline Biron, 2023. "Psychosocial Risks among Quebec Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Social Media Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(12), pages 1-15, June.
    12. Ivan Marzocchi & Valerio Ghezzi & Cristina Di Tecco & Matteo Ronchetti & Valeria Ciampa & Ilaria Olivo & Claudio Barbaranelli, 2023. "Demand–Resource Profiles and Job Satisfaction in the Healthcare Sector: A Person-Centered Examination Using Bayesian Informative Hypothesis Testing," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(2), pages 1-21, January.
    13. Rhodes, Tim & Ruiz Osorio, Maria Paula & Maldonado Martinez, Adriana & Restrepo Henao, Alexandra & Lancaster, Kari, 2024. "Exhausting care: On the collateral realities of caring in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 343(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jennifer E. Moreno-Jiménez & Luis Manuel Blanco-Donoso & Evangelia Demerouti & Sylvia Belda Hofheinz & Mario Chico-Fernández & Bernardo Moreno-Jiménez & Eva Garrosa, 2021. "The Role of Healthcare Professionals’ Passion in Predicting Secondary Traumatic Stress and Posttraumatic Growth in the Face of COVID-19: A Longitudinal Approach," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(9), pages 1-16, April.
    2. Gabriele d’Ettorre & Giancarlo Ceccarelli & Letizia Santinelli & Paolo Vassalini & Giuseppe Pietro Innocenti & Francesco Alessandri & Alexia E. Koukopoulos & Alessandro Russo & Gabriella d’Ettorre & L, 2021. "Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms in Healthcare Workers Dealing with the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-16, January.
    3. Eleonora Gambaro & Carla Gramaglia & Debora Marangon & Manuela Probo & Marco Rudoni & Patrizia Zeppegno, 2023. "Health Workers’ Burnout and COVID-19 Pandemic: 1-Year after—Results from a Repeated Cross-Sectional Survey," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(12), pages 1-22, June.
    4. Shimaa A. Elghazally & Atef F. Alkarn & Hussein Elkhayat & Ahmed K. Ibrahim & Mariam Roshdy Elkhayat, 2021. "Burnout Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Health-Care Professionals at Assiut University Hospitals, 2020," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(10), pages 1-12, May.
    5. Domingo Palacios-Ceña & César Fernández-de-las-Peñas & Lidiane L. Florencio & Ana I. de-la-Llave-Rincón & María Palacios-Ceña, 2020. "Emotional Experience and Feelings during First COVID-19 Outbreak Perceived by Physical Therapists: A Qualitative Study in Madrid, Spain," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(1), pages 1-17, December.
    6. Michelle C. Engelbrecht & J. Christo Heunis & N. Gladys Kigozi, 2021. "Post-Traumatic Stress and Coping Strategies of South African Nurses during the Second Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(15), pages 1-14, July.
    7. Borja Nicolás Santana-López & Yeray Gabriel Santana-Padilla & María Desamparados Bernat-Adell & Jesús María González-Martín & Luciano Santana-Cabrera, 2022. "The Need for Psychological Support of Health Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Influence on Their Work," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(15), pages 1-18, July.
    8. Maria Karanikola & Meropi Mpouzika & Elizabeth Papathanassoglou & Katerina Kaikoushi & Anna Hatzioannou & Ioannis Leontiou & Chris Livadiotis & Nicos Christophorou & Andreas Chatzittofis, 2022. "Work-Related Traumatic Stress Response in Nurses Employed in COVID-19 Settings," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(17), pages 1-15, September.
    9. Andrea Aguglia & Andrea Amerio & Alessandra Costanza & Nicolò Parodi & Francesco Copello & Gianluca Serafini & Mario Amore, 2021. "Hopelessness and Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms among Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Any Role for Mediating Variables?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(12), pages 1-10, June.
    10. Nazeer Hussain Khan & Sajid Hassan & Sher Bahader & Sidra Fatima & Syed Muhammad Imran Haider Zaidi & Razia Virk & Kexin Jiang & Enshe Jiang, 2022. "How Daily Obstacles Affect Frontline Healthcare Professionals’ Mental Health during Omicron: A Daily Diary Study of Handwashing Behavior," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(14), pages 1-18, July.
    11. Maximiliane Amelie Schlenz & Alexander Schmidt & Bernd Wöstmann & Andreas May & Hans-Peter Howaldt & Dennis Albert & Doreen Ziedorn & Norbert Krämer & Nelly Schulz-Weidner, 2021. "Perspectives from Dentists, Dental Assistants, Students, and Patients on Dental Care Adapted to the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Survey," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-12, April.
    12. Haobin Fan & Xuanyi Nie, 2020. "Impacts of Layoffs and Government Assistance on Mental Health during COVID-19: An Evidence-Based Study of the United States," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-23, September.
    13. Gemma Seda-Gombau & Juan José Montero-Alía & Eduard Moreno-Gabriel & Pere Torán-Monserrat, 2021. "Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Burnout in Primary Care Physicians in Catalonia," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-12, August.
    14. Montserrat Venturas & Judith Prats & Elena Querol & Adelaida Zabalegui & Núria Fabrellas & Paula Rivera & Claudia Casafont & Cecilia Cuzco & Cindy E. Frías & Maria Carmen Olivé & Silvia Pérez-Ortega, 2021. "Lived Experiences of Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients: A Qualitative Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(20), pages 1-12, October.
    15. Michele Villa & Colette Balice-Bourgois & Angela Tolotti & Anna Falcó-Pegueroles & Serena Barello & Elena Corina Luca & Luca Clivio & Annette Biegger & Dario Valcarenghi & Loris Bonetti, 2021. "Ethical Conflict and Its Psychological Correlates among Hospital Nurses in the Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study within Swiss COVID-19 and Non-COVID-19 Wards," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(22), pages 1-14, November.
    16. Ullah, Faiz & Harrigan, Nicholas M., 2022. "A natural experiment in social security as public health measure: Experiences of international students as temporary migrant workers during two Covid-19 lockdowns," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 313(C).
    17. Ana Magro & Aida Gutiérrez-García & Marta González-Álvarez & Mario Del Líbano, 2022. "Psychosocial Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Healthcare Professionals in Spain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-14, November.
    18. Jesús Maximiliano Granados Villalpando & Humberto Azuara Forcelledo & Jorge Luis Ble Castillo & Alejandro Jiménez Sastré & Isela Esther Juárez Rojop & Viridiana Olvera Hernández & Fernando Enrique May, 2022. "COVID-19, Long COVID Syndrome, and Mental Health Sequelae in a Mexican Population," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(12), pages 1-10, June.
    19. Michał Błaszczyk & Milan Popović & Karolina Zajdel & Radosław Zajdel, 2022. "The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Organisation of Remote Work in IT Companies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-14, October.
    20. Francesco Pace & Giulia Sciotto & Naomi Alexia Randazzo & Vincenza Macaluso, 2022. "Teachers’ Work-Related Well-Being in Times of COVID-19: The Effects of Technostress and Online Teaching," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-10, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:5:p:2453-:d:509132. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.