Dataset Information

Impacts and challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic on emergency medicine physicians in the United States.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Emergency medicine (EM) physicians have been on the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to determine the impact of COVID-19 pandemic and other related factors such as resource availability and institutional support on well-being, burnout and job-satisfaction of EM physicians in the United States.

Methods

A cross-sectional survey study of EM physicians was conducted through the Emergency Medicine Practice Research Network of the ACEP. The survey focused on resource adequacy, institutional support, well-being, and burnout. A total of 890 EM physicians were invited to participate. Both descriptive and risk adjusted, and multivariate regressions were performed with a statistical significance defined as p < 0.05.

Results

EM physicians' response rate was 18.7% (166) from 39 states. Burnout was reported by 74.7% (124) since the start of the pandemic. Factors contributing included work-related emotional strain and anxiety, isolation from family and friends, and increased workload. Those reporting inadequate resources felt ignored by their institutions (p < 0.0001). Physicians who felt there was inadequate institutional support, were also dissatisfied with patient care resources (p = 0.001). Physicians expressing job dissatisfaction were more likely to report feelings of burnout (p = 0.001).

Conclusion

EM physicians face greater burnout in the COVID-19 pandemic. This may be compounded by resource scarcity, psychological stress, isolation, and job dissatisfaction. Many of the survey respondents reported inadequate mental health services and resources. The findings of this study may help identify solutions to mitigate these issues.

SUBMITTER: Nguyen J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8016733 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:ObjectiveThe objective was to assess anxiety and burnout levels, home life changes, and measures to relieve stress of U.S. academic emergency medicine (EM) physicians during the COVID-19 pandemic acceleration phase.MethodsWe sent a cross-sectional e-mail survey to all EM physicians at seven academic emergency departments. The survey incorporated items from validated stress scales and assessed perceptions and key elements in the following domains: numbers of suspected COVID-19 patients, availability of diagnostic testing, levels of home and workplace anxiety, severity of work burnout, identification of stressors, changes in home behaviors, and measures to decrease provider anxiety.ResultsA total of 426 (56.7%) EM physicians responded. On a scale of 1 to 7 (1 = not at all, 4 = somewhat, and 7 = extremely), the median (interquartile range) reported effect of the pandemic on both work and home stress levels was 5 (4-6). Reported levels of emotional exhaustion/burnout increased from a prepandemic median (IQR) of 3 (2-4) to since the pandemic started a median of 4 (3-6), with a difference in medians of 1.8 (95% confidence interval = 1.7 to 1.9). Most physicians (90.8%) reported changing their behavior toward family and friends, especially by decreasing signs of affection (76.8%). The most commonly cited measures cited to alleviate stress/anxiety were increasing personal protective equipment (PPE) availability, offering rapid COVID-19 testing at physician discretion, providing clearer communication about COVID-19 protocol changes, and assuring that physicians can take leave for care of family and self.ConclusionsDuring the acceleration phase, the COVID-19 pandemic has induced substantial workplace and home anxiety in academic EM physicians, and their exposure during work has had a major impact on their home lives. Measures cited to decrease stress include enhanced availability of PPE, rapid turnaround testing at provider discretion, and clear communication about COVID-19 protocol changes.