Discipline of Public Health Medicine, School of Nursing & Public Health, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 4041, South Africa.
Cancer & Infectious Diseases Epidemiology Research Unit (CIDERU), College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 4041, South Africa.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Apr 10;20(8):5451. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20085451.
Globally, the high prevalence of burnout in healthcare workers (HCWs) is of the utmost concern. Burnout is a state of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and a decreased sense of personal accomplishment. While the 2019 Coronavirus (COVID-19) exacerbated the burnout prevalence among HCWs, limited studies have explored this phenomenon using qualitative methodologies in the Eastern Cape Province and South Africa generally. This study explored how frontline healthcare workers experienced burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic in Mthatha Regional Hospital.
Ten face-to-face in-depth interviews were conducted with non-specialized medical doctors and nurses who directly cared for COVID-19-infected patients during the pandemic in Mthatha Regional Hospital (MRH). In-depth interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data were managed through NVIVO 12 software before being thematically analyzed using Colaizzi's analysis method.
Four main themes emerged from the analysis. These themes were burnout manifestation (emotional strain, detachment and irritability, uncertainty-induced fear, and anxiety, physical exhaustion, yet, low job accomplishment, dread and professional responsibility), precursors of burnout (occupational exposure to high mortality, staff shortages, elongated high patient volume and workload, disease uncertainties and consistent feeling of grief), alleviating factors of burnout (time off work, psychologist intervention, periods of low infection rate and additional staff), and the last theme was every cloud has a silver lining (improved infection prevention and control (IPC) measures, learning to be more empathetic, the passion remains and confidence grows).
The COVID-19 pandemic brought about a rapid change in the work environment of healthcare workers who are the backbone of efficient healthcare services, thereby rendering them vulnerable to increased burnout risks. This study provides strategic information for policymakers and managers on developing and strengthening welfare policies to promote and protect frontline health workers' well-being and work functioning.
在全球范围内，医护人员（HCWs）的高 burnout 率是最令人担忧的问题。Burnout 是一种情绪疲惫、去人性化和个人成就感降低的状态。虽然 2019 年冠状病毒（COVID-19）加剧了 HCWs 的 burnout 率，但在东开普省和南非，使用定性方法研究这一现象的研究有限。本研究探讨了在 Mthatha 地区医院，一线医护人员在 COVID-19 大流行期间的 burnout 经历。
对在 Mthatha 地区医院（MRH）直接照顾 COVID-19 感染患者的非专科医生和护士进行了 10 次面对面的深入访谈。深入访谈以数字方式记录并逐字转录。数据通过 NVIVO 12 软件进行管理，然后使用 Colaizzi 的分析方法进行主题分析。
从分析中出现了四个主要主题。这些主题是 burnout 的表现（情绪紧张、冷漠和易怒、不确定性引起的恐惧和焦虑、身体疲惫，但工作成就感低、恐惧和职业责任）、burnout 的前兆（职业暴露于高死亡率、人员短缺、延长的高患者数量和工作量、疾病不确定性和持续的悲伤感）、减轻 burnout 的因素（休假、心理学家干预、感染率低和增加人员的时期）和最后一个主题是每个乌云都有银边（改进感染预防和控制（IPC）措施、学会更有同理心、激情依然存在、信心增强）。
COVID-19 大流行使医护人员的工作环境发生了迅速变化，他们是高效医疗服务的骨干，因此使他们更容易受到 burnout 风险的增加。本研究为政策制定者和管理者提供了战略信息，以制定和加强福利政策，促进和保护一线卫生工作者的福祉和工作功能。
