“Previous evidence has shown that these experiences can lead to stress, fatigue and burning, which can increase the risk of common mental health problems,” said Scherer, a research assistant at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Researchers analyzed a combined 65 studies involving more than 97,000 people for a global study. Their analysis broke the numbers by area and found that healthcare workers in the Middle East had the highest levels of anxiety and depression, at 28.9% and 34.6%. these mental health challenges, individually.
“There were a lot of patients in the Middle East with COVID-19, and this workload may put additional pressure on health care professionals,” Scherer said via email.
North America was at its lowest level, with 14.8% of health care workers experiencing anxiety and 18.7% experiencing depression.
However, only seven studies analyzed data from the Middle East and two from North America, so Scherer said it is important to be careful when interpreting the results.
Researchers averaged results from nine of the 65 studies to estimate that 21.5% of health care workers across all regions had moderate levels of PTSD.
But it’s not always easy for healthcare workers to reach out for help. CNN chief medical journalist Dr. Sanjay Gupta said in May last year that it can be difficult for people to recognize the psychological tax on frontline workers.
Frontline workers at the pandemic are “running a marathon at sprint speed, endless in sight,” said CNN emergency physician and medical examiner Dr. Leana Wen, who is also a visiting professor at George Washington University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health. She explained that people need to understand mental health as something that is no different from physical health and make it a priority.
As the pandemic progresses, Shekhar Saxena, professor of global mental health practice at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, said it will be important to monitor these numbers over time and the inclusion of data on arson, suicide attempts, and deaths, which was not included in this study.
In addition to providing treatment and facilities to health care workers, Scherer said research is needed into which parts of the pandemic that cause stress in the first place.
“We could examine the link between working hours and increased symptoms as one example,” he said.
Saxena, who was not involved in the study, said a study of these associations could lead to “organizational actions,” or actions that a workplace can take to create an environment that prevents over-stress.
The key is to ensure that there is an approach that “values the perspective and input of health care professionals alongside the views of mental health experts,” Scherer said in an email.