Section: 
Science articles
Science articlesAssessment of health staff emotional state and behavioural changes as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic: results of a cross-sectional survey of healthcare workers
A. A. Korneenkov (1), P. A. Ovchinnikov (2), E. E. Vyazemskaya (1), I. V. Fanta (1), V. V. Dvoryanchikov (1), Yu. K. Yanov (3)
(1) Saint Petersburg Research Institute of Ear, Throat, Nose and Speech, Saint Petersburg, 190013, Russia,(2) Vishnevsky Central Military Clinical Hospital, Moscow region, Krasnogorsk, 143409, Russia, (3) Mechnikov North-Western State Medical University, Saint Petersburg, 191015, Russia
UDK: УДК 616.98-036.21:614.23/25-004.4
DOI: https://doi.org/10.18692/1810-4800-2022-4-35-45
ABSTRACT
The aim of the study is to analyze the perception of health workers of their security in the workplace and their assessment of the organization of the labor process healthcare facilities in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: For the solution, a cross-sectional online survey was conducted among healthcare workers. The study included 269 people and was analyzed in the R software environment. Results and discussion: It is known that healthcare workers are at risk which are still in direct contact with COVID-19 patients, as well as those whose contact with such patients is not recorded. Differences in subjective assessments of the impact of the pandemic among these groups of health care workers were found. Overall, 84.8% of respondents expressed concern about the COVID-19 pandemic, with 3 times the likelihood of concern in the contact group. The most frequent cause of concern was isolation from family and social environment 76.2%, while the risk of actually infecting oneself or family members worried respondents 2 times less frequently. There is no statistical reason to believe that respondents were more likely to limit social contacts (53.2%) because they considered their work environment «dangerous. Even fewer health care workers tried to isolate themselves from their relatives and friends (37.9%). If such measures were taken, they were statistically more likely to be taken by health care workers in direct contact with COVID-19 patients. The majority of participants rated above-average availability of avoidance of work duties. 5% of respondents indicated that they tried to take time off to avoid going to work because of COVID-19 concerns. Research in this area will help expand the provision of information about the psychological impact of the threat of SARS-CoV-2 infection to health care workers in general, and otorhinolaryngology care in particular.
Publication date:
18.08.2022
Keywords:
survey of healthcare workers, COVID-19, impact of the epidemic on healthcare workers, changes in healthcare worker behavior, subjective assessment, cross-sectional survey. For citation:
Korneenkov A. A., Ovchinnikov P. A., Vyazemskaya E. E., Fanta I. V., Dvoryanchikov V. V., Yanov Yu. K. Assessment of health staff emotional state and behavioural changes as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic: results of a cross-sectional survey of healthcare workers. Rossiiskaya otorinolaringologiya. 2022;21(4):35-45. https://doi.org/10.18692/1810-4800-2022-4-35-45