Dataset Information

A qualitative investigation of the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on emergency physicians' emotional experiences and coping strategies.

ABSTRACT:

Study objective

Throughout the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, emergency physicians in the United States have faced unprecedented challenges, risks, and uncertainty while caring for patients in an already vulnerable healthcare system. As such, the pandemic has exacerbated high levels of negative emotions and burnout among emergency physicians, but little systematic qualitative work has documented these phenomena. The purpose of this qualitative investigation was to study emergency physicians' emotional experiences in response to COVID-19 and the coping strategies that they employed to navigate the pandemic.

Methods

From September 2020 to February 2021, we conducted semistructured interviews with 26 emergency physicians recruited from 2 early COVID-19 epicenters: New York City and the Metro Boston region. Interviews, coding, and analyses were conducted using a grounded theory approach.

Results

Emergency physicians reported heightened anxiety, empathy, sadness, frustration, and anger during the pandemic. Physicians frequently attributed feelings of anxiety to medical uncertainty around the COVID-19 virus, personal risk of contracting the virus and transmitting it to family members, the emergency environment, and resource availability. Emergency physicians also discussed the emotional effects of policies prohibiting patients' family members from entering the emergency department (ED), both on themselves and patients. Sources of physician anger and frustration included changing policies and rules, hospital leadership and administration, and pay cuts. Some physicians described an evolving, ongoing coping process in response to the pandemic, and most identified collective discussion and processing within the emergency medicine community as an effective coping strategy.

Conclusions

Our findings underscore the need to investigate the effects of physicians' pandemic-related emotional stress and burnout on patient care. Evidence-based interventions to support emergency physicians in coping with pandemic-related trauma are needed.

SUBMITTER: Welsh M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8549858 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Similar Datasets

Project description:IntroductionThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has been shown to increase levels of psychological distress among healthcare workers. Little is known, however, about specific positive and negative individual and organizational factors that affect the mental health of emergency physicians (EP) during COVID-19. Our objective was to assess these factors in a broad geographic sample of EPs in the United States.MethodsWe conducted an electronic, prospective, cross-sectional national survey of EPs from October 6-December 29, 2020. Measures assessed negative mental health outcomes (depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, and insomnia), positive work-related outcomes, and strategies used to cope with COVID-19. After preliminary analyses and internal reliability testing, we performed four separate three-stage hierarchical multiple regression analyses to examine individual and organizational predictive factors for psychological distress.ResultsResponse rate was 50%, with 259 EPs completing the survey from 11 different sites. Overall, 85% of respondents reported negative psychological effects due to COVID-19. Participants reported feeling more stressed (31%), lonelier (26%), more anxious (25%), more irritable (24%) and sadder (17.5%). Prevalence of mental health conditions was 17% for depression, 13% for anxiety, 7.5% for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and 18% for insomnia. Regular exercise decreased from 69% to 56%, while daily alcohol use increased from 8% to 15%. Coping strategies of behavioral disengagement, self-blame, and venting were significant predictors of psychological distress, while humor and positive reframing were negatively associated with psychological distress.ConclusionEmergency physicians have experienced high levels of psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic. Those using avoidant coping strategies were most likely to experience depression, anxiety, insomnia, and PTSD, while humor and positive reframing were effective coping strategies.

Project description:ObjectiveThis scoping review aims to identify the COVID-19-related stressors and the corresponding coping strategies among emergency physicians during and following the pandemic.IntroductionIn the midst of an unprecedented COVID-19 crisis, healthcare professionals confront a diverse set of difficulties. Emergency physicians are under immense pressure. They must provide frontline care and make quick decisions in a high-pressure environment. This can lead to a variety of physical and psychological stressors, including extended working hours, increased workload, personal risk of infection and the emotional toll of caring for infected patients. It is critical that they be informed of the numerous stressors they face, as well as the various coping methods accessible to them, in order to deal with these pressures.Inclusion criteriaThis paper will summarise the findings of primary or secondary investigations on emergency physicians' stressors and coping strategies during and following the COVID-19 epidemic. All journals and grey literature in English and Mandarin published after January 2020 are eligible.MethodsThe Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) method will be used to conduct the scoping review. A thorough literature search will be performed on OVID Medline, Scopus and Web of Science to find eligible studies, using the keywords related to emergency physicians, stress and coping strategies. Two reviewers will independently revise all of the full-text articles, extract data and evaluate the study quality. A narrative overview of the findings from included studies will be given.Ethics and disseminationThis review will involve secondary analysis of published literature, and therefore ethics approval is not required. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses checklist will be used to guide translation of findings. Results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals and presented in conferences via abstract and presentation.

Project description:BackgroundEmergency medical care, including prehospital treatment, forms an important component of any healthcare system. Like most low-middle-income countries, Nepal has an emergency medical system that can be described as underdeveloped. Emergency physicians navigating this system may experience challenges or barriers in their treatment of patients. This study aimed to investigate physicians' perspectives on emergency and prehospital patient management in a low-income country, Nepal, and to understand the challenges and barriers they perceive in emergency treatment including both the prehospital treatment and the immediate in-hospital treatment at the emergency department.MethodsUsing a qualitative study, eight semi-structured interviews with physicians working in a Nepalese emergency department were performed. The interviews were conducted between September and November 2021 and were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data were subsequently analyzed using the systematic text condensation method.ResultsFour main themes and associated sub-themes were identified: (1) patients' sociocultural, educational, and financial factors (such as financial issues and financial inequality) and regional differences; (2) emergency department's organization and resources concerning human and material resources, protocols, and guidelines; (3) problems with the emergency department (ED) service's qualities and availability caused by an insufficient integration of the ED and the EMS, prehospital resources, and financial interests in the EMS; and (4) surrounding healthcare system's impact on the ED where, especially, the levels of organized primary care, governmental responsibilities, and healthcare structure were addressed.ConclusionsThe physicians identified numerous regularly encountered challenges and barriers. These challenges stretched beyond the ED and into various aspects of society. The patients' financial problems were described as the greatest problem, restricting the treatment due to a given patient's inability or unwillingness to pay for the required procedures. The physicians were thus restricted in completing their duties to the desired levels. The low quality of prehospital care and a lack of education and awareness of common diseases and symptoms in a significant proportion of patients were identified by many participants as being significant issues. The aforementioned challenges or barriers directly resulted in patients arriving in critical conditions that could have been avoided if the disease were treated earlier.

Project description:Parenting and providing extensive care to a child with a life-limiting or life-threatening disease while being aware of the future loss of the child are among the most stressful parental experiences. Due to technical and medical improvements, children are living longer and are increasingly cared for at home. To align healthcare professionals' support with the needs of parents, a clear understanding of prominent experiences and main coping strategies of parents caring for a child in need of palliative care is needed. An interpretative qualitative study using thematic analysis was performed. Single or repeated interviews were undertaken with 42 parents of 24 children with malignant or non-malignant diseases receiving palliative care. Prominent reported parental experiences were daily anxiety of child loss, confrontation with loss and related grief, ambiguity towards uncertainty, preservation of a meaningful relationship with their child, tension regarding end-of-life decisions and engagement with professionals. Four closely related coping strategies were identified: suppressing emotions by keeping the loss of their child at bay, seeking support, taking control to arrange optimal childcare and adapting to and accepting the ongoing change(s).Conclusion: Parents need healthcare professionals who understand and carefully handle their worries, losses, parent-child relationship and coping strategies. What is Known: • In paediatric palliative care, parents have a daunting task in fulfilling all caregiving tasks while striving for control of their child's symptoms, a life worth living and a family balance. What is New: • Prominent experiences were: continuous management of anxiety of child loss, feelings of uncertainty, tension with end-of-life decision making and engagement with professionals. Parents experienced unique significance to their child, reinforcing a meaningful parent-child relationship. • Relevant coping strategies were: suppressing emotions, seeking support, taking control to arrange optimal care and adapting to the ongoing changes. • To provide tailored support, professionals need to understand parents' perceptions, relationship with their child and coping strategies.

Project description:ObjectiveThis study explored women's sexual experiences and coping strategies for sexual problems after gynaecological treatment.SettingThe research was carried out at Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital, one of the two cancer centre hospitals in the country.Study designA phenomenological qualitative study design was employed in this study.Study participantsParticipants were recruited using purposeful sampling. Thirteen eligible study participants were interviewed face to face. Data were collected from 2 February to 15 March 2019 and analysed at the same time. For data analysis, thematic analysis was used, which comprises three stages: data reduction, data display and data conclusion.ResultsFour themes resulted from the analysis of individual interview data, including treatment side effects, sexual issues following radiation therapy, lack of awareness regarding cancer treatment and sexual dysfunction, and coping strategies for sexual dysfunction following gynaecological cancer treatment. Three subthemes emerged as coping mechanisms for managing sexual issues and dysfunction among Ethiopian women with gynaecological cancer: avoiding sexual intercourse, praying for healing and seeking professional help. These themes were identified as the rich and detailed account of the experiences of sexually active women who have received treatment for their cervical cancer.ConclusionThis study has broadened the perspectives on sexuality in the setting of gynaecological cancer and challenged certain commonly held beliefs about sexuality after treatment. Researchers should look into how inclusive sexuality education and training may be better integrated into the training programmes of healthcare workers. More research is needed to learn how partners of women with gynaecological cancer cope with sexual changes after treatment, how the couple as a partnership negotiates changes after treatment, and the facilitators and barriers that healthcare providers face when discussing sexuality issues with patients.