Occupational Stress, Burnout, and Depression in Women in Healthcare During COVID-19 Pandemic: Rapid Scoping Review

Abi Sriharan; Savithiri Ratnapalan; Andrea C Tricco; Doina Lupea; Ana Patricia Ayala; Hilary Pang; Dongjoo Daniel Lee

doi:10.3389/fgwh.2020.596690

Occupational Stress, Burnout, and Depression in Women in Healthcare During COVID-19 Pandemic: Rapid Scoping Review

Front Glob Womens Health. 2020 Nov 26:1:596690. doi: 10.3389/fgwh.2020.596690. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Abi Sriharan^{1

2}, Savithiri Ratnapalan^{2

3

4}, Andrea C Tricco^{5

6}, Doina Lupea⁷, Ana Patricia Ayala⁸, Hilary Pang^{1

9}, Dongjoo Daniel Lee^{1

9}

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
² Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
³ Department of Pediatrics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
⁴ Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada.
⁵ Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
⁶ Joanna Briggs Institute Centre of Excellence, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
⁷ Physician Health Program, Ontario Medical Association, Toronto, ON, Canada.
⁸ Gerstein Science Information Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
⁹ Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.

Abstract

Objectives: The overall objectives of this rapid scoping review are to (a) identify the common triggers of stress, burnout, and depression faced by women in health care during the COVID-19 pandemic, and (b) explore individual-, organizational-, and systems-level interventions that can support the well-being of women HCWs during a pandemic. Design: This scoping review is registered on Open Science Framework (OSF) and was guided by the JBI guide to scoping reviews and reported using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) extension to scoping reviews. A systematic search of literature databases (Medline, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycInfo and ERIC) was conducted from inception until June 12, 2020. Two reviewers independently assessed full-text articles according to predefined criteria. Interventions: We included review articles and primary studies that reported on stress, burnout, and depression in HCWs; that primarily focused on women; and that included the percentage or number of women included. All English language studies from any geographical setting where COVID-19 has affected the population were reviewed. Primary and secondary outcome measures: Studies reporting on mental health outcomes (e.g., stress, burnout, and depression in HCWs), interventions to support mental health well-being were included. Results: Of the 2,803 papers found, 28 were included. The triggers of stress, burnout and depression are grouped under individual-, organizational-, and systems-level factors. There is a limited amount of evidence on effective interventions that prevents anxiety, stress, burnout and depression during a pandemic. Conclusions: Our preliminary findings show that women HCWs are at increased risk for stress, burnout, and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic. These negative outcomes are triggered by individual level factors such as lack of social support; family status; organizational factors such as access to personal protective equipment or high workload; and systems-level factors such as prevalence of COVID-19, rapidly changing public health guidelines, and a lack of recognition at work.

Keywords: COVID-19; burnout; health care; health work force; mental health; occupational stress; pandemic; women.

Publication types

Systematic Review