'You just don't feel like your work goes recognised': healthcare worker experiences of tension related to public discourse around the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Resource Type
- Academic Journal
- Authors
- Timmins GT; Pardee RAND Graduate School, RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, California, USA gtimmins@rand.org.; Bandini JI; RAND Corporation, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.; Ahluwalia SC; RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, California, USA.; Bialas A; RAND Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.; Meredith LS; RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, California, USA.; Gidengil C; RAND Corporation, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
- Source
- Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group Ltd Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 101757339 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 2398-631X (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 2398631X NLM ISO Abbreviation: BMJ Lead Subsets: MEDLINE
- Subject
- Language
- English
Objectives: To understand the impact of public discourse and reaction around the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare worker (HCW) experiences and well-being caring for patients with COVID-19.
Methods: We conducted 60 min in-depth interviews with 11 physicians and 12 nurses who were providing care to patients with COVID-19 in acute care settings at two health systems in the Western USA. Interviews were conducted in Spring-Summer 2022 using a semi-structured interview protocol that guided respondents through different stages of the pandemic.
Results: Three themes emerged from the data around providing care in the unique social context of the COVID-19 pandemic including: (1) public polarisation and disagreement with science; (2) feelings of hope and optimism during the pandemic and (3) the compounded strain of providing care within this unique social context of the pandemic.
Conclusions: To prepare for future pandemics, improved public health communications and social-emotional supports for HCWs are critical to ameliorate the physical and emotional impacts related to the social context of modern US pandemic response.
Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared.
(© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)