Impacts of COVID-19 on the Life and Work of Healthcare Workers During the Nationwide Partial Lockdown in Vietnam

Abstract

Background: Healthcare workers are frontline responders facing a disproportionate increase in occupational responsibilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Added work-related stress among healthcare personnel may lead to personal and work-related repercussions, such as burnout or decreased quality of care for patients; however, little is known about how the COVID-19 pandemic affects the daily work and life of these workers. This study aimed to evaluate the personal and occupational impacts of the COVID-19 induced partial lockdown in Vietnam among hospital staff.Methods: A cross-sectional web-based study was carried out to collect demographic data and the personal and job impacts of respondents during the second week of national lockdown in April 2020. Snowball sampling technique was applied to recruit 742 hospital staff. The exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was used to examine the validity of the instrument.Results: Of the 742 respondents, 21.2% agreed that “working attitude well-maintained,” followed by 16.1% of respondents who reported that there were “enough employees at work.” Only 3.2% of respondents agreed that “their work was appreciated by society.” Furthermore, healthcare workers in the central region were less likely to have experienced “Avoidance of disclosure and discrimination related to COVID-19” than other areas (Coef. = – 0.25, CI: −0.42 to −0.07). Being women also had a negative association with scores in “Avoidance of disclosure and discrimination related to COVID 19” domain (Coef. = −0.27, CI: −0.43 to −0.12) while having a positive association with “negative attitude towards working conditions” domain (Coef. = 0.19, CI: 0.09 to 0.3). In addition, working in administrative offices (Coef. = 0.20; 95% CI = 0.05 to 0.36) and infectious departments (Coef. = 0.36; 95% CI = 0.09 to 0.63) had a positive association with “Increased work pressure due to COVID 19” domain.Conclusion: These findings revealed marginal impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the work and life of hospital staff in Vietnam. Furthermore, this study highlighted the importance of implementing preventive strategies during the nationwide partial lockdown to manage hospital admissions and the burden on healthcare workers. Finally, this study characterizes targeted demographics that may benefit from appreciation by employers and society during a national pandemic.

Post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression and related factors among COVID-19 patients during the fourth wave of the pandemic in Vietnam

“… 65 One study pointed out the negative impact of higher academic background on mental health among people during the nationwide lockdown due to COVID-19. 18 This finding agrees with a previous study among quarantined COVID-19 patients where those with a better education expressed a higher likelihood of distress. 66 …”

“… 16 , 17 During the first nationwide lockdown to curtail the spread of COVID-19, negative experiences in work, life and health were reported by healthcare workers. 13 , 18–25 The Vietnamese government and Ministry of Health implemented many policies and directives to control COVID-19, 17 changing the habits, culture and lifestyles of the country, partly affecting mental health. The changes in the living environment, the received information and social relationships, along with the strict isolation policy when infected with COVID-19 may also disrupt the patient's mental state or exacerbate their psychiatric symptoms.…”

Psychotherapy and Follow-Up in Health Care Workers After the COVID-19 Epidemic: A Single Center’s Experience

“…[4][5][6][7][8][9][10] Indeed, HCWs have been prone to psychological manifestations, such as depression, anxiety, insomnia, and stress, during the COVID-19 outbreak. [11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20] Therefore, psychological disorders in HCWs are also an important issue to be addressed. 21 About one thousand seven hundred studies evaluate the mental health of HCWs during the COVID- 19.…”

Behavior, social and economic impact of COVID‐19 responses among healthcare professionals: Development and validation of COVID‐19 Responses Impact Questionnaire (COVRiQ)

“…T A B L E 4 (Continued) As the world goes through the fourth wave of the pandemic and the emerging variants of COVID-19, significant changes are expected in socioeconomic and behavioral health (Ho et al, 2021;Pham et al, 2021). Health belief model may play a vital role in bringing about these important lifestyle changes (Jones et al, 2015).…”