IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v19y2022i9p4951-d797154.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Mental Health Outcomes in Australian Healthcare and Aged-Care Workers during the Second Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Author

Listed:
  • Sarah L. McGuinness

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Alfred Health, Melbourne, VIC 3004, Australia)

  • Josphin Johnson

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Alfred Health, Melbourne, VIC 3004, Australia)

  • Owen Eades

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Alfred Health, Melbourne, VIC 3004, Australia)

  • Peter A. Cameron

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Alfred Health, Melbourne, VIC 3004, Australia)

  • Andrew Forbes

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia)

  • Jane Fisher

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia)

  • Kelsey Grantham

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia)

  • Carol Hodgson

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Alfred Health, Melbourne, VIC 3004, Australia)

  • Peter Hunter

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Alfred Health, Melbourne, VIC 3004, Australia)

  • Jessica Kasza

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia)

  • Helen L. Kelsall

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia)

  • Maggie Kirkman

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia)

  • Grant Russell

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia)

  • Philip L. Russo

    (School of Nursing and Midwifery, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Cabrini Health, Melbourne, VIC 3144, Australia)

  • Malcolm R. Sim

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia)

  • Kasha P. Singh

    (Peninsula Health, Melbourne, VIC 3199, Australia
    The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia)

  • Helen Skouteris

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia)

  • Karen L. Smith

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Ambulance Victoria, Melbourne, VIC 3108, Australia)

  • Rhonda L. Stuart

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Monash Health, Melbourne, VIC 3168, Australia)

  • Helena J. Teede

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Monash Health, Melbourne, VIC 3168, Australia)

  • James M. Trauer

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia)

  • Andrew Udy

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Alfred Health, Melbourne, VIC 3004, Australia)

  • Sophia Zoungas

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Alfred Health, Melbourne, VIC 3004, Australia)

  • Karin Leder

    (School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
    Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne, VIC 3050, Australia)

Abstract

Objective: the COVID-19 pandemic has incurred psychological risks for healthcare workers (HCWs). We established a Victorian HCW cohort (the Coronavirus in Victorian Healthcare and Aged-Care Workers (COVIC-HA) cohort study) to examine COVID-19 impacts on HCWs and assess organisational responses over time. Methods: mixed-methods cohort study, with baseline data collected via an online survey (7 May–18 July 2021) across four healthcare settings: ambulance, hospitals, primary care, and residential aged-care. Outcomes included self-reported symptoms of depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress (PTS), wellbeing, burnout, and resilience, measured using validated tools. Work and home-related COVID-19 impacts and perceptions of workplace responses were also captured. Results: among 984 HCWs, symptoms of clinically significant depression, anxiety, and PTS were reported by 22.5%, 14.0%, and 20.4%, respectively, highest among paramedics and nurses. Emotional exhaustion reflecting moderate–severe burnout was reported by 65.1%. Concerns about contracting COVID-19 at work and transmitting COVID-19 were common, but 91.2% felt well-informed on workplace changes and 78.3% reported that support services were available. Conclusions: Australian HCWs employed during 2021 experienced adverse mental health outcomes, with prevalence differences observed according to occupation. Longitudinal evidence is needed to inform workplace strategies that support the physical and mental wellbeing of HCWs at organisational and state policy levels.

Suggested Citation

  • Sarah L. McGuinness & Josphin Johnson & Owen Eades & Peter A. Cameron & Andrew Forbes & Jane Fisher & Kelsey Grantham & Carol Hodgson & Peter Hunter & Jessica Kasza & Helen L. Kelsall & Maggie Kirkman, 2022. "Mental Health Outcomes in Australian Healthcare and Aged-Care Workers during the Second Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-15, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:9:p:4951-:d:797154
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/9/4951/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/9/4951/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Robert Stanton & Quyen G. To & Saman Khalesi & Susan L. Williams & Stephanie J. Alley & Tanya L. Thwaite & Andrew S. Fenning & Corneel Vandelanotte, 2020. "Depression, Anxiety and Stress during COVID-19: Associations with Changes in Physical Activity, Sleep, Tobacco and Alcohol Use in Australian Adults," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(11), pages 1-13, June.
    2. Kenward, Michael G. & Roger, James H., 2009. "An improved approximation to the precision of fixed effects from restricted maximum likelihood," Computational Statistics & Data Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 53(7), pages 2583-2595, May.
    3. 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.
    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. Mark McEvoy & Gabriel Caccaviello & Angela Crombie & Timothy Skinner & Stephen J. Begg & Peter Faulkner & Anne McEvoy & Kevin Masman & Laura Bamforth & Carol Parker & Evan Stanyer & Amanda Collings & , 2024. "Health and Wellbeing of Regional and Rural Australian Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Baseline Cross-Sectional Findings from the Loddon Mallee Healthcare Worker COVID-19 Study—A Prosp," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(5), pages 1-30, May.
    2. Mojca Dobnik & Mateja Lorber, 2023. "Management Support for Healthcare Workers’ Mental Health and Burnout during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cohort Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-15, August.

    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. Yuta Suzuki & Noriaki Maeda & Daigo Hirado & Taizan Shirakawa & Yukio Urabe, 2020. "Physical Activity Changes and Its Risk Factors among Community-Dwelling Japanese Older Adults during the COVID-19 Epidemic: Associations with Subjective Well-Being and Health-Related Quality of Life," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-12, September.
    2. 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).
    3. Morenike Oluwatoyin Folayan & Roberto Ariel Abeldaño Zuniga & Oliver C. Ezechi & Brandon Brown & Annie L. Nguyen & Nourhan M. Aly & Passent Ellakany & Ifeoma E. Idigbe & Abeedha Tu-Allah Khan & Folake, 2022. "Associations between Emotional Distress, Sleep Changes, Decreased Tooth Brushing Frequency, Self-Reported Oral Ulcers and SARS-Cov-2 Infection during the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Global ," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-11, September.
    4. 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.
    5. Victoria Blom & Amanda Lönn & Björn Ekblom & Lena V. Kallings & Daniel Väisänen & Erik Hemmingsson & Gunnar Andersson & Peter Wallin & Andreas Stenling & Örjan Ekblom & Magnus Lindwall & Jane Salier E, 2021. "Lifestyle Habits and Mental Health in Light of the Two COVID-19 Pandemic Waves in Sweden, 2020," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-19, March.
    6. 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.
    7. Clément Cormi & Stéphane Sanchez & Valentine de l’Estoile & Laura Ollivier & Aude Letty & Gilles Berrut & Emmanuel Mulin, 2021. "Telepsychiatry to Provide Mental Health Support to Healthcare Professionals during the COVID-19 Crisis: A Cross-Sectional Survey among 321 Healthcare Professionals in France," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(19), pages 1-14, September.
    8. Vembye, Mikkel Helding & Pustejovsky, James E & Pigott, Terri, 2022. "Power Approximations for Meta-Analysis of Dependent Effect Sizes," MetaArXiv 6tp9y, Center for Open Science.
    9. Alexander Frank Pasquel Cajas & Verónica Tomasa Cajas Bravo & Roberto Carlos Dávila Morán, 2023. "Remote Work in Peru during the COVID-19 Pandemic," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-25, February.
    10. Lauren R. Gullett & Dana M. Alhasan & W. Braxton Jackson & Chandra L. Jackson, 2022. "Employment Industry and Occupational Class in Relation to Serious Psychological Distress in the United States," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(14), pages 1-26, July.
    11. Ruixin Su & Bojan Obrenovic & Jianguo Du & Danijela Godinic & Akmal Khudaykulov, 2022. "COVID-19 Pandemic Implications for Corporate Sustainability and Society: A Literature Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(3), pages 1-23, January.
    12. Perri Campbell & Erin Wilson & Luke John Howie & Andrew Joyce & Jenny Crosbie & Robyn Eversole, 2024. "The Role of Shared Resilience in Building Employment Pathways with People with a Disability," Disabilities, MDPI, vol. 4(1), pages 1-16, January.
    13. Malou Grubben & Sara Wiertsema & Remco Hoekman & Gerbert Kraaykamp, 2022. "Is Working from Home during COVID-19 Associated with Increased Sports Participation? Contexts of Sports, Sports Location and Socioeconomic Inequality," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(16), pages 1-12, August.
    14. Mehran Shayganfard & Fateme Mahdavi & Mohammad Haghighi & Dena Sadeghi-Bahmani & Serge Brand, 2021. "Sources of Health Anxiety for Hospital Staff Working during the Covid-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-11, March.
    15. Joanna Baj-Korpak & Kamil Zaworski & Ewa Szymczuk & Andrei Shpakou, 2022. "Physical Activity and Mental Health of Medical Students from Poland and Belarus-Countries with Different Restrictive Approaches during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(21), pages 1-15, October.
    16. Gregory Knell & Michael C. Robertson & Erin E. Dooley & Katie Burford & Karla S. Mendez, 2020. "Health Behavior Changes During COVID-19 Pandemic and Subsequent “Stay-at-Home” Orders," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-16, August.
    17. Andrés Calvache-Mateo & Laura López-López & Javier Martín-Núñez & Alejandro Heredia-Ciuró & María Granados-Santiago & Araceli Ortiz-Rubio & Marie Carmen Valenza, 2023. "Pain and Clinical Presentation: A Cross-Sectional Study of Patients with New-Onset Chronic Pain in Long-COVID-19 Syndrome," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(5), pages 1-15, February.
    18. Mikkel Helding Vembye & James Eric Pustejovsky & Therese Deocampo Pigott, 2023. "Power Approximations for Overall Average Effects in Meta-Analysis With Dependent Effect Sizes," Journal of Educational and Behavioral Statistics, , vol. 48(1), pages 70-102, February.
    19. Stefania Costi & Sara Paltrinieri & Barbara Bressi & Stefania Fugazzaro & Paolo Giorgi Rossi & Elisa Mazzini, 2021. "Poor Sleep during the First Peak of the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(1), pages 1-14, January.
    20. Verónica Violant-Holz & M. Gloria Gallego-Jiménez & Carina S. González-González & Sarah Muñoz-Violant & Manuel José Rodríguez & Oriol Sansano-Nadal & Myriam Guerra-Balic, 2020. "Psychological Health and Physical Activity Levels during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(24), pages 1-19, December.

    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:19:y:2022:i:9:p:4951-:d:797154. 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.