Editorial – Healthcare Worker Stress and Burnout in the time of COVID-19: A Call for Action

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Inadequate preparedness for response to COVID-19 is associated with stress and burnout among healthcare workers in Ghana

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has compounded the global crisis of stress and burnout among healthcare workers. But few studies have empirically examined the factors driving these outcomes in Africa. Our study examined associations between perceived preparedness to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and healthcare worker stress and burnout and identified potential mediating factors among healthcare workers in Ghana. Methods Healthcare workers in Ghana completed a cross-sectional self-administered online survey from April to May 2020; 414 and 409 completed stress and burnout questions, respectively. Perceived preparedness, stress, and burnout were measured using validated psychosocial scales. We assessed associations using linear regressions with robust standard errors. Results The average score for preparedness was 24 (SD = 8.8), 16.3 (SD = 5.9) for stress, and 37.4 (SD = 15.5) for burnout. In multivariate analysis, healthcare workers who felt somewhat prepared and prepared had lower stress (β = -1.89, 95% CI: -3.49 to -0.30 and β = -2.66, 95% CI: -4.48 to -0.84) and burnout (β = -7.74, 95% CI: -11.8 to -3.64 and β = -9.25, 95% CI: -14.1 to –4.41) scores than those who did not feel prepared. Appreciation from management and family support were associated with lower stress and burnout, while fear of infection was associated with higher stress and burnout. Fear of infection partially mediated the relationship between perceived preparedness and stress/burnout, accounting for about 16 to 17% of the effect. Conclusions Low perceived preparedness to respond to COVID-19 increases stress and burnout, and this is partly through fear of infection. Interventions, incentives, and health systemic changes to increase healthcare workers’ morale and capacity to respond to the pandemic are needed.

COVID-19 Efforts at the Institute of Image Guided Surgery (IHU-Strasbourg): 2020

We submit a summary of some of the activities of the IHU-Strasbourg during the initial period of the COVID-19 pandemic. These were presented as part of the coronnavation effort coordinated by Dr Adrian Park. Three initiatives are presented as follows: Protect-Est App, healthcare worker stress, and converted diving mask for ventilation. Two of the 3 projects are still ongoing, and one (Predoict-Est) has been adopted nationally.

The work–family interface in a gendered cultural context: Cross-national analysis of work stress

Work stress is one key health outcome that is responsive to the work–family interface, particularly to the extent to which work and family life lead to conflict outside of their respective spheres. Previous scholarship examining work stress cross-nationally has highlighted the culturally specific work expectations that shape worker experiences in the workplace. However, those work expectations are shaped by cultural opportunities for women and men. This article adds to the literature on cross-national understandings of work using 2010 European Social Survey data ( N = 4,278 women and 3,712 men) to examine the extent to which country-level differences in gender equality shape the experiences of worker stress in 26 countries. After controlling for individual-level demands and resources (in the home and workplace), the analysis yields two key findings. First, there is an association between work-to-family conflict and worker stress for both women and men, but the association between family-to-work conflict and worker stress was evident only among women. Second, the gendered cultural context shapes women’s experience of workplace stress both directly and through moderating the negative influences of work-to-family and family-to-work conflict. The findings have specific significance for understanding how cultural context shapes whether workplace policies can be used as mechanisms to reduce worker stress.