Health Care Workers in Crisis

The April 2007 issue of the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry presents the results of a research study assessing the immediate and sustained psychological health of health care workers who were at high risk of exposure during the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak. At the peak of the 2003 SARS outbreak, health care workers in two acute care Hong Kong general hospitals were assessed for stress. One year later, these health care workers were reassessed. High-risk health care workers who practised respiratory medicine were compared with nonrespiratory medicine workers, who acted as the low-risk health care worker group. The inital results showed that high-risk health care workers had elevated stress levels that were not significantly different from levels in low-risk health care worker subjects but more high-risk health care workers reported fatigue, poor sleep, worry about health, and fear of social contact, despite their confidence in infection-control measures. By 2004, however, stress levels in the high-risk group were not only higher than the year before but were also significantly higher than scores among low-risk health care worker subjects. In 2004, the perceived stress levels in the high-risk group were associated with higher depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress scores. Posttraumatic stress scores were found to be a partial mediator of the relation between the high risk of exposure to SARS and higher perceived stress. The researchers concluded that health care workers who were at high risk of contracting SARS appear not only to have chronic stress but also higher levels of depression and anxiety.  It was recommeded that front-line staff receive stress management training as part of preparation for future outbreaks.

Click here for the abstract.