How to Provide Mental Health Support to Frontline COVID-19 Healthcare Workers

The enormous stress that is being placed on the shoulders of healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic is creating unprecedented stress levels among workers in hospitals, clinics and healthcare settings around the country.

Research coming from China shows that more than 70 percent of frontline workers experienced mental health symptoms, such as depression, anxiety, and insomnia.

Protecting healthcare workers’ mental health is vital during this pandemic. Otherwise, workers will not be able to provide care to those who need it. Mental health symptoms can range from difficulty concentrating to an inability to perform work activities. These issues can severely limit a healthcare worker’s ability to do their normal job. This is why it is so critical that healthcare employers’ help take care of their employees’ mental health before burnout creates serious barriers to care.

How do you, as a healthcare employer or organization, help your employees during this time?

 

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A special moment of gratitude last night to end a tough week in #NewYorkCity 👏🏽. As the sun began to set over #NewYork the city’s spirit came to life with a round of applause for the incredible health care workers & emergency responders who are putting others first as we battle #COVID19. #NYC has sadly become the global epicenter of the #CoronaVirus but moments like this show the true character of people in this great city. A huge thank you to everyone on the frontlines! Special shout out to one of my best friends @apakalypse, an Emergency DR right in the thick of it in one of the worst affected #NY hospitals. You are an absolute hero! Together we will get through this so please everyone stay inside and stay safe. Sending positive vibes during these sad times 🙏🏽. #ClapBecauseWeCare #BeautifulDestinations @beautifuldestinations.

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If medical workers don’t recognize the signs of mental health problems, they won’t seek help. Things like irritability, difficulty sleeping, trouble making decisions are all symptoms of various mental illnesses. However, workers may believe that it’s normal to have problems sleeping when they are stressed. They might believe that their trouble concentrating is from something else entirely. So, make sure you provide educational materials to help them recognize issues. These materials can also be disseminated through video. 

Numerous research studies have found that self-care is so important for all of us. Therefore, you must communicate to workers that their ability to care for others is dependent upon their willingness to take necessary breaks and stay on top of mental health. The following things can help stressed medical personnel: 

• Self-monitoring and pacing.
• Time for virtual check-in sessions with friends and family.
• Brief intervals for relaxation, meditation and stress management.
• Breaks for bodily care and nourishment.
• Exercise and movement.

So, how can you encourage them to practice self-care? You might develop a support video that outlines the guidelines for scheduling these self-care practices into their schedule.

As New Yorkers, we feel a duty to help our neihbors in time of need.  We know how to create compelling video content that will get your employees’ attention. We offer many options for getting your message out there.

We can edit your self-taped recordings to create an informative slideshow for your employees to watch. Or, we can create training videos that you can use as invaluable resources to protect your healthcare workers. Our team will work with you fully remotely to get your video materials created as quickly as possible.