COVID-19 Pandemic Support Programs for Healthcare Workers and Implications for Occupational Mental Health: A Narrative Review

Abstract

This narrative review aims to summarize initiatives developed during the COVID-19 pandemic to support healthcare workers’ emotional well-being within the context of a pre-existing framework of occupational mental health guidelines. This occupational mental health framework integrates principles from multiple disciplines to optimize prevention and management of mental health issues among employees. We conducted an online search on Medline/PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Embase for studies that reported on design or execution of medical institution-based interventions, aiming to support healthcare worker mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Inclusion criteria was intentionally broad in order to incorporate as many types of interventions at varying stages of development or evaluation. We included 31 studies in our review that reported on newly designed psychological support interventions for healthcare workers (HCW) during the COVID-19 pandemic. We found that most programs commonly supported HCW mental health through offering one or more of the following initiatives: expanded basic need resources/services, additional workplace training programs that bolstered professional preparedness while also indirectly boosting HCW emotional health, and/or expanded psychological support programs, such as peer support programs, psychoeducational or counseling services. Most programs, however, did not consider methods to ensure program longevity or sustainability. The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the acuity of HCW mental health issues and is likely to leave long lasting mental health strains among HCW. This pandemic is a critical point in time to catalyze much needed progress in reducing stigma and expanding HCW mental health care access.

“Don't Just Study our Distress, Do Something”: Implementing and Evaluating a Modified Stepped-Care Model for Health Care Worker Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Similar to other institution-wide mental health support programs described in the literature, we developed a program with a variety of services to meet the needs of our HCW workforce. 18 , 19 , 31 – 33 This suggests that stepped or tiered care is a model that can be applied beyond primary care to the workplace setting. 34 However, there has been little published data about who has accessed these HCW programs, their impact on mental health, and whether they reached those with the highest mental health needs.…”

Development of an Evidence-Informed Solution to Emotional Distress in Public Safety Personnel and Healthcare Workers: The Social Support, Tracking Distress, Education, and Discussion CommunitY (STEADY) Program

“…This can lead to cynicism and emotional withdrawal in all facets of life [ 55 , 56 ]. John Wayne syndrome has been well reported in PSP and has been shown to impact staff and learners [ 3 , 16 , 56 ], with a similar culture seen in HCWs [ 57 , 58 ]. Both populations are at high risk of negative mental health outcomes due to similar occupational stressors of exposure to human suffering in high-pressure situations, along with expectations that they are the “heroes”.…”

“…Leadership engagement, along with psychoeducation, can be used to reduce the negative stigma associated with expressing emotional distress and help-seeking behaviours in work environments [ 58 ]. Teaching leaders and frontline workers about normal stress reactions, as opposed to pathologizing them, might help to increase comfort with a discussion of emotional reactions and knowing when to access mental health services.…”

“…Many programs have been devised to support the mental health needs of PSP and HCW [ 58 , 78 , 93 , 94 , 95 , 96 , 97 , 98 , 99 ]. Mental wellness programs increase the ability to cope with cumulative occupational stress and can improve health outcomes for HCWs and PSP [ 58 ].…”

Prediction of PTSD related to COVID-19 in emergency staff based on the components of self-compassion and perceived social support

“…Self-compassion has been introduced as an important protective variable against the stresses experienced by HCWs [ 21 ]. Self-compassion has been a major topic of interest in support/training programs for HCWs in France during the pandemic [ 22 ].…”