Article
Nursing
Karen J. Foli, Anna Forster, Chang Cheng, Lingsong Zhang, Yu-Chin Chiu
Summary: This qualitative study explores the experiences of frontline nurses working in critical care areas during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on trauma and coping mechanisms. Nurses reported psychological distress, a surge of deaths, conflicts, betrayal, and posttraumatic growth. They also highlighted increased stress, substance use, and weakened coping mechanisms due to the ongoing pandemic, emphasizing the need for mental health support services.
JOURNAL OF ADVANCED NURSING
(2021)
Article
Psychiatry
Sangyoon Han, Sejin Choi, Seung Hyun Cho, Joonhyuk Lee, Je-Yeon Yun
Summary: The study found that public health doctors at the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic reported perceived distress, lowered self-efficacy at work, anxiety, and depressive mood. Predictors of poor mental health included environmental aspects such as insufficient personal protective equipment, workplace of screening center, and prolonged workhours, as well as psychosocial aspects such as fear of infection and death, and social stigma and rejection. Satisfaction with monetary compensation and proactive coping were predictive of better mental health.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yangyang Wu, Ting Zhang, Ziwen Ye, Kai Chen, J. van der Kuijp, Xue Sun, Guoyi Han, Yi Zhao, Yang Liu, Lei Huang
Summary: This study investigates the interactions between anxiety level, risk perception, and coping behavior during different stages of COVID-19 in China. It found that sustained worries of being infected, gender differences, excessive protective behavior, and frequency of access to COVID-related news increase public anxiety. Additionally, public risk perception is significantly associated with their willingness to vaccinate.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Mireia Utzet, Amaia Bacigalupe, Albert Navarro
Summary: During the COVID-19 pandemic, inequalities were observed in terms of employment, working conditions, psychosocial risks, health, and consumption of tranquilisers and opioid analgesics among frontline workers, with a particular vulnerability for women. The consumption of tranquilisers and opioid analgesics increased significantly during the pandemic, especially among frontline women workers.
JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY AND COMMUNITY HEALTH
(2022)
Article
Critical Care Medicine
Traci N. Adams, Rosechelle M. Ruggiero, Carol S. North
Summary: Frontline workers faced extreme stress levels during the COVID-19 pandemic, and supporting their emotional and mental health needs is crucial. This article proposes strategies that integrate knowledge from disaster mental health literature and lessons learned during the pandemic to address the needs of frontline healthcare workers. The strategies include distinguishing psychiatric illness from normative distress, providing treatment for psychopathologic symptoms, and offering supportive care interventions for frontline workers' emotional distress.
Article
Psychiatry
Bianca E. E. Kavanagh, Josephine S. S. O'Donohue, Melanie A. M. Ashton, Mojtaba Lotfaliany, Maddy McCallum, Anna L. L. Wrobel, Sarah Croce, Michael Berk, Lucy Saunders, Jerry Lai, Lesley Berk
Summary: This study aimed to explore the coping strategies, distress, and post-traumatic growth among Australians with and without a history of mental health diagnoses during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results showed that individuals with a history of mental health diagnoses experienced higher levels of distress. There were significant differences in coping strategies associated with distress and post-traumatic growth between the two groups.
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHIATRY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Halim Ismail, Yong-Hong Phan, Kausalyaa Chandriah, Mohd Ridzwan Arman, Nurul Nabihah Mokhtar, Siti Aishah Hamdan, Sheng Qian Yew
Summary: This study examined the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress among frontline healthcare workers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia during the COVID-19 pandemic. It also investigated the associations between these mental disorders and sociodemographic factors, workplace worries, and coping strategies. The findings revealed a high prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress, which were attributed to various sources of workplace worries and inappropriate coping strategies.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Wei-Qin Li, Ping Yuan, Jia Sun, Min-Ling Xu, Qin-Xia Wang, Dan-Dan Ge, Ming-Ming Jiang, Li-Qun Xing, Wen-Jun Du, Qiang Li
Summary: The study found that resilience and active coping were positively correlated with the quality of life of healthcare workers, while working in confirmed case wards, COVID-19 stress, and passive coping were negatively correlated. Resilience, coping style, and COVID-19 stress accounted for a certain percentage of the variance in predicting the Global QOL.
PSYCHOLOGY HEALTH & MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Samuel Iddi, Dorcas Obiri-Yeboah, Irene Korkoi Aboh, Reginald Quansah, Samuel Asiedu Owusu, Nancy Innocentia Ebu Enyan, Ruby Victoria Kodom, Epaphrodite Nsabimana, Stefan Jansen, Benard Ekumah, Sheila A. Boamah, Godfred Odei Boateng, David Teye Doku, Frederick Ato Armah
Summary: The study found that in Ghana, financial security and optimism towards the disease increase one's ability to cope with the pandemic, while having pre-existing medical conditions, excessive praying, and increased sleeping reduce one's ability to cope effectively.
Article
Virology
Elodie Charbonnier, Aurelie Goncalves, Cecile Puechlong, Lucile Montalescot, Sarah Le Vigouroux
Summary: This study compared the mental health and coping strategies of French university students during different phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. The results showed that maladaptive strategies, concerns, and symptom levels were higher during lockdown periods compared to unlock periods, and symptom levels were higher in the second year of the pandemic compared to the first year.
Article
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Rebeca Robles, Sara Infante, Miriam Feria, Ivan Arango, Elsa Tirado, Andres Rodriguez-Delgado, Edgar Miranda, Ana Fresan, Claudia Becerra, Raul Escamilla, Eduardo Angel Madrigal de Leon
Summary: This study describes and evaluates the implementation process and clinical impact of brief, remote, manualized evidence-based practices (EBP) for crisis intervention and suicide risk management among healthcare workers attending patients with COVID-19 in Mexico.
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Communication
Erin S. Craw, Tess M. Buckley, Michelle Miller-Day
Summary: This study examines nurses' experiences of coping with stress while treating COVID-19 patients during the pandemic. Through in-depth interviews, three main themes emerge: nurses' unique experiences in the frontline, lack of understanding from others, and coping with stress together.
HEALTH COMMUNICATION
(2023)
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Beth K. Jaworski, Katherine Taylor, Kelly M. Ramsey, Adrienne Heinz, Sarah Steinmetz, Ian Pagano, Giovanni Moraja, Jason E. Owen
Summary: The study characterizes the usage of COVID Coach, finding that the majority of users tried stress management tools on their first day, and users with symptoms of anxiety, depression, and PTSD tended to use the app for a longer period of time.
JOURNAL OF MEDICAL INTERNET RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Megumi Hazumi, Kentaro Matsui, Ayumi Tsuru, Rei Otsuki, Kentaro Nagao, Naoko Ayabe, Tomohiro Utsumi, Michio Fukumizu, Aoi Kawamura, Muneto Izuhara, Takuya Yoshiike, Kenichi Kuriyama
Summary: This study investigated the difference and factors contributing to mental distress in frontline and non-frontline healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results showed that an increase in psychological burden and COVID-19-related fear were significantly associated with mental distress in all participants. Experience of discrimination was significantly associated with mental distress in frontline staff, while an increase in physical burden was significantly associated with mental distress in non-frontline staff.
Article
Immunology
Paul Kwok Ming Poon, Weiju Zhou, Dicken Cheong Chun Chan, Kin On Kwok, Samuel Yeung Shan Wong
Summary: Family doctors' recommendation practices for COVID-19 vaccination are influenced by their own vaccination status, duration of practice, willingness to initiate discussions, and concerns about vaccine side effects on chronic illness patients.
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Nagtha Anil, Natasha Smallwood, Sadie Dunn
Summary: This study investigated whether clinicians assess driving status and provide education on driving safety when initiating opioid therapy among patients with advanced lung cancer. The results revealed that clinicians rarely evaluated driving status and provided limited education on opioid-related driving risks.
BMJ SUPPORTIVE & PALLIATIVE CARE
(2023)
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Lauren Russo, Karen Willis, Natasha Smallwood
Summary: This study explored clinicians' perspectives on specialist palliative care and opioids for interstitial lung disease patients, highlighting barriers such as stigmatized beliefs and difficulties navigating the healthcare system. Early implementation of specialist palliative care and symptom palliation were deemed crucial for alleviating symptoms, providing emotional support, and enhancing quality of life by the participants. Trust in therapeutic relationships and strong interdisciplinary partnerships were seen as key in improving patient access to symptom palliation.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HOSPICE & PALLIATIVE MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Roseanna Hunter, Karen Willis, Natasha Smallwood
Summary: This study aims to investigate the workplace and psychosocial experiences of Australian junior doctors during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study found that junior doctors often face a hierarchical workplace culture, challenging working conditions, disrupted training and career trajectories, and broader psychosocial impacts. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated existing issues and stressors for junior doctors and highlighted the threat it poses to medical workforce retention.
INTERNAL MEDICINE JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Joanna Yilin Huang, Patrick Steele, Eli Dabscheck, Natasha Smallwood
Summary: Severe chronic breathlessness in patients with chronic non-malignant lung disease significantly affects quality of life. Nasal high flow (NHF) therapy shows potential as a new treatment for relieving breathlessness at home.
JOURNAL OF PAIN AND SYMPTOM MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Review
Respiratory System
Natasha Smallwood, Warren Harrex, Megan Rees, Karen Willis, Catherine M. Bennett
Summary: The COVID-19 pandemic has posed significant challenges to healthcare systems globally, with healthcare workers (HCWs) being particularly affected. HCWs are at risk of infection, with some experiencing long-term illness that may impact their ability to work. Governments, healthcare organizations, and employers have a key responsibility to protect and support the health workforce during crises.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Megan Rees, Belinda Liu, Amy Pascoe, Natasha Smallwood
Summary: This study found that the care provided to bronchiectasis patients in a tertiary hospital general respiratory clinic was not fully guideline concordant. The study also validated the Bronchiectasis Severity Index (BSI) in the Australian context.
INTERNAL MEDICINE JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Rebecca Disler, Brooke Henwood, Tim Luckett, Amy Pascoe, Doranne Donesky, Louis Irving, David C. Currow, Natasha Smallwood
Summary: There is inadequate access and support for end-of-life (EOL) and Advance Care Planning (ACP) discussions with patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Allied health professionals (AHPs) lack procedural knowledge and confidence to engage in sensitive EOL discussions, and face barriers such as patient and family reluctance, organizational challenges, and lack of role clarity.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HOSPICE & PALLIATIVE MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Rebecca Disler, Amy Pascoe, Helen Hickson, Julian Wright, Bronwyn Philips, Sivakumar Subramaniam, Kristen Glenister, Jennifer Philip, Doranne Donesky, Natasha Smallwood
Summary: The study found that there is significant variation in palliative care service structure and capacity across rural areas, relying on a complex, sometimes ad hoc network of onsite and external supports. Services for chronic, non-malignant disease are scarce and largely unrecognized, underscoring the need for specific referral pathways to enhance patient care.
JOURNAL OF PAIN AND SYMPTOM MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Editorial Material
Respiratory System
Natasha Smallwood
Editorial Material
Respiratory System
Amy Pascoe, Natasha Smallwood
Summary: The article explores a related topic.
Editorial Material
Respiratory System
Natasha Smallwood
Review
Respiratory System
Lena Ly, Amy Pascoe, Jennifer Philip, Peter Hudson, Natasha Smallwood
Summary: This scoping review examined the reporting of social determinants of health (SDH) in pulmonary rehabilitation, singing for lung health, and multicomponent palliative care interventions. The study found limited reporting of SDH, with sex being the most frequently reported determinant and social class mentioned only once in the included studies. The findings suggest a lack of understanding of the impact of social barriers on engagement in clinical trials and the effectiveness of complex interventions within certain sub-populations.
EUROPEAN RESPIRATORY REVIEW
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Katherine Petrie, Natasha Smallwood, Amy Pascoe, Karen Willis
Summary: During the COVID-19 pandemic, Australian paramedics faced significant work pressure and mental health issues. The survey revealed a high prevalence of mental health symptoms among paramedics, with almost two thirds reporting burnout. Qualitative analysis highlighted concerns regarding workplace safety, uncertainty in both work and home environments, and a lack of crisis preparedness in the health system.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH
(2022)
