Lateef Fatimah
Department of Emergency Medicine, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore.
Adjunct Professor, Duke NUS Graduate Medical School, Singapore.
J Emerg Trauma Shock. 2020 Apr-Jun;13(2):116-123. doi: 10.4103/JETS.JETS_27_20. Epub 2020 Jun 10.
Emerging infectious diseases have the potential to spread across borders extremely quickly. This was seen during the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak and now, coronavirus disease (COVID 19) (novel coronavirus) pandemic. For outbreaks and pandemics, there will be behavioral, affective, and cognitive changes and adaptation seen. This may be prominent in frontline workers and healthcare workers (HCWs), who work in high-risk areas, as well as people in general. What represents the psychology and mindset of people during a pandemic? What is needed to allay anxieties and instill calm? What will be needed to keep the motivation levels of people and HCW high so that they continue to function optimally? Which motivation theory can be used to explain this and how do employers and management utilize this in their approach/strategies in planning for an outbreak? Finally, the impact of culture, in the various contexts, cannot be overlooked in crisis and pandemic management. The author is a senior emergency physician in Singapore, who has been through SARS and now the COVID pandemic. She has been instrumental in sharing some of the changes and practices implemented in Singapore, since SARS 17 years ago, until now. Besides being a full-time practicing emergency physician, the author is also an elected Member of the Singapore Parliament for the last 14 years. She shares her views on an aspect often overlooked during a pandemic: psychological wellness and motivations of people, including for HCW at the frontline.
新发传染病有可能极其迅速地跨境传播。严重急性呼吸综合征（SARS）疫情期间以及现在的冠状病毒病（COVID-19）（新型冠状病毒）大流行期间都出现了这种情况。对于疫情和大流行，人们会出现行为、情感和认知上的变化及适应情况。这在一线工作人员和医护人员（HCWs）中可能尤为突出，他们在高风险地区工作，普通民众也会如此。大流行期间人们的心理和思维模式是怎样的？需要做些什么来缓解焦虑并灌输平静？需要什么来保持人们和医护人员的高积极性，以便他们继续保持最佳工作状态？哪种动机理论可以用来解释这一点，雇主和管理层在应对疫情的规划方法/策略中如何利用这一点？最后，在危机和大流行管理中，各种背景下文化的影响都不能被忽视。作者是新加坡的一名资深急诊医生，经历过SARS疫情，现在又经历了新冠疫情。自17年前的SARS疫情以来，直至现在，她一直在分享新加坡实施的一些变化和做法。除了是一名全职执业急诊医生外，作者在过去14年里还是新加坡议会的当选议员。她分享了她对大流行期间一个经常被忽视的方面的看法：人们的心理健康和动机，包括一线医护人员的心理健康和动机。
