Taking Care at Work: Gender, Coping, and Anti-Violence Work During COVID-19

COVID-19 transformed frontline anti-violence workers' organizational routines by transitioning to virtual formats, decreasing face-to-face interactions, and shifting client needs. To address ever-changing workplace stressors, service providers adapted and/or modified coping mechanisms. In this paper, we analyze interviews with 23 anti-violence workers in the US Great Plains region, focusing on tactics used to avoid burnout and meet client needs. We discuss how workplace pace, direct-action coping practices, and a lack of inter/intra-agency social support impact how workers do their necessary jobs. Though some challenges were pervasive pre-pandemic, anti-violence workers' experiences also highlight how "post-COVID-19” workplaces must adequately support staffers. © The Author(s) 2023.

Moral exemplars promote positive attitudes, beliefs, intentions, and behaviors toward outgroups during the COVID-19 pandemic: The explanatory role of self-transcendent emotions

Due to their response at the COVID-19 frontline, migrant essential workers became moral exemplars likely to boost emotions such as gratitude or admiration. We examined the effect of moral exemplars on outgroup attitudes, beliefs about the outgroup, intentions and behavior toward the outgroup, as well as the role of self-transcendent emotions in this link. Participants of an online panel-based experimental study (N = 651) were randomly assigned to either watch a video clip with a story about migrant essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic (i.e., the moral exemplars condition) or to watch a neutral video involving migrants (i.e., the control condition), and were invited to fill in a questionnaire and donate money to an association fighting for immigrants' rights. Compared to the control condition, participants in the moral exemplars condition manifested more positive outgroup attitudes, beliefs about the outgroup, and were more willing to help the outgroup, also via self-transcendent emotions. The exposure to the moral exemplars narrative was linked with more helping behavior (a donation to an NGO) only indirectly via self-transcendent emotions. Moral exemplars proved useful in promoting positive attitudes and prosociality toward immigrants. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Group Processes & Intergroup Relations is the property of Sage Publications, Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Influencing factors of sleep disorders and sleep quality in healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

AIM: The aim of this study was to identify the influencing factors of sleep disorders and sleep quality in healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. DESIGN: Systematic review and meta-analysis of observational research. METHODS: The databases of the Cochrane Library, Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, SinoMed database, CNKI, Wanfang Data, and VIP were systematically searched. The quality of studies was assessed using the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality evaluation criteria and the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. RESULTS: A total of 29 studies were included, of which 20 were cross-sectional studies, eight were cohort studies, and 1 was a case-control study; 17 influencing factors were finally identified. Greater risk of sleep disturbance was associated with female gender, single relationship status, chronic disease, insomnia history, less exercise, lack of social support, frontline work, days served in frontline work, department of service, night shift, years of work experience, anxiety, depression, stress, received psychological assistance, worried about being infected, and degree of fear with COVID-19. CONCLUSIONS: During the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare workers did have worse sleep quality than the general population. The influencing factors of sleep disorders and sleep quality in healthcare workers are multifaceted. Identification and timely intervention of resolvable influencing factors are particularly important for preventing sleep disorders and improving sleep. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: This is a meta-analysis of previously published studies so there was no patient or public contribution.

COVID-19: An Ontological Human Circus?

Geopolitical and national interests predominate, given that a war between Russia and Ukraine would result in a daily economic decline in both countries. I am convinced that countries, not their people, wage wars. People have other concerns, such as food and a virus that has apparently not yet left these countries. Several plausibility arguments are presented in the first section of the paper, which addresses the persistently debated virus's origins. In contrast, its leadership continues to flounder. Numerous healthcare workers perished on the front lines, but there was scant coverage of their deaths during the first year of the pandemic and none since. The elderly, the frail elderly, and even the young are the most severely affected by the pandemic deaths that have occurred over the past two years and continue to occur. Current ontology is concerned with the controversies, hypotheses, and theories surrounding this damned insignificant RNA and its capacity to cause such catastrophic harm to humanity. Indeed, the issue is its disputed and contested origin. After two years, it appears that the graphs, countries, and news that are updated every minute on the Worldometer have not changed. However, something has changed;for example, countries have ceased to report the incidence of COVID-19 deaths. © 2023 Pulla. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

A qualitative analysis of how frontline homeless service workers in Texas experience burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic

Frontline homeless service provision is both rewarding and challenging work. Some have raised concerns about elevated burnout risk, traumatic stress, compassion fatigue, and high levels of staff turnover in the sector. Previous research has shown that the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated existing challenges and added new ones, such as adapting to changing public health guidance, which created particularly stressful conditions for workers and agencies. The aim of this study was to explore to what extent homeless service workers have experienced burnout during the pandemic and the primary work-based contextual factors they believe contribute to burnout. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 21 frontline homeless service workers in Texas. While all participants described some burnout during the pandemic, the severity varied. Participants' burnout experiences aligned with the three dimensions of burnout: energy depletion, mental distancing from work, and reduced professional efficacy. Workers also pointed to multiple organization-level factors as causes of burnout during the pandemic. These included poor communication, top-down decision making, lack of organization support, reduced peer support from co-workers, and inadequate supervision. Recognizing how organizational factors can impact worker well-being, recommendations for strengthening leadership, improving supervision strategies, and creating opportunities for peer support between co-workers are offered.

Mental Health Amidst COVID-19: A Review Article.

Outbreaks of infectious diseases confined to a particular locality are not unusual. Respiratory infections such as tuberculosis or community-acquired pneumonia are known in developing and underdeveloped countries. However, COVID-19 infection had globally created havoc due to its high rate of transmission and serious consequences on physical and mental health paralyzing the healthcare facilities of not only developing but also developed nations. This created a sense of uncertainty and insecurity in the public globally, adversely affecting the mental health of almost every individual. It is genuinely obtrusive that the COVID-19 pandemic brought about a global lockdown, adversely affecting the psychological health of the public. Some pandemic-related stressors affect nearly everyone. This review aims to study the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of psychological well-being and its overall effect on society, thereby making it essential to lend them a helping hand.

Locating frontline workers' position up against COVID-19.

History of mankind has been brutal and marred by wars, attacks, invasions, occupying others territory and killing other human beings with their animals in the process. But now with arrival of Industrial Revolutions in last century or so, we gradually realized that for having and maintaining economic prosperity; we need others' cooperation and since then full- scale wars almost disappeared. But when we fight now and support others in the process, we realise that brute force is only occasionally used entity and most of the times technological methods are deployed to injure others. It is this rationale which makes way for people of either gender having capability to use highly advanced weaponry to enter the arena to decide fate of their side. Therefore, now war is not exclusively masculine entity and that analogy may not be appropriate in modern era. When we use masculine notion to explain our war against COVID-19, there are many shortcomings.

Healing Baltimore: Creating Support for VALUE (Vaccine Access & Acceptance, Lives in Unity, Education & Engagement) Baltimore Ambassadors as They Serve During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

VALUE (Vaccine Acceptance & Access Lives in Unity, Engagement & Education) Baltimore began in February 2021 with the vision of helping underserved communities in Baltimore City value COVID-19 vaccination and have access to the vaccine. VALUE dispatched ambassadors to provide COVID-19 education and risk-mitigation strategies in their communities. Once the project was implemented, we noticed that our ambassadors were often overwhelmed by misinformation in the community and our priority populations faced deeper issues relating to the social determinants of health (SDOH) and social needs such as food, transportation, job loss, and housing.To help our ambassadors cope with and address these issues, we created Healing Baltimore in April 2021. Healing Baltimore aims to support our VALUE ambassadors as they contribute toward improving the wellbeing of Baltimore now and after COVID. Healing Baltimore has four elements: (1) Weekly Self-Care Tips, (2) Weekly Positive Facts about Baltimore, (3) SDOH Referral to Baltimore City Health Department Services, and (4) Webinars to teach us about the VALUE communities while offering the opportunity to discuss historical trauma. We share our lessons learned from Healing Baltimore, which include (1) increasing ambassador input, (2) engagement, (3) co-creation, (4) collaboration, and (5) community appreciation.

Group early intervention eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy as a video-conference psychotherapy with frontline/emergency workers in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder and moral injury-An RCT study.

Objective: Frontline mental health, emergency, law enforcement, and social workers have faced unprecedented psychological distress in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of the RCT (Randomized Controls Trial) study was to investigate the effectiveness of a Group EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) therapy (Group Traumatic Episode Protocol-GTEP) in the treatment of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Moral Injury. The treatment focus is an early intervention, group trauma treatment, delivered remotely as video-conference psychotherapy (VCP). This early intervention used an intensive treatment delivery of 4x2h sessions over 1-week. Additionally, the group EMDR intervention utilized therapist rotation in treatment delivery. Methods: The study's design comprised a delayed (1-month) treatment intervention (control) versus an active group. Measurements included the International Trauma Questionnaire (ITQ), Generalized Anxiety Disorder Assessment (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Moral Injury Events Scale (MIES), and a Quality-of-Life psychometric (EQ-5D), tested at T0, T1: pre-treatment, T2: post-treatment, T3: 1-month follow-up (FU), T4: 3-month FU, and T5: 6-month FU. The Adverse Childhood Experiences - International version (ACEs), Benevolent Childhood Experience (BCEs) was ascertained at pre-treatment only. N = 85 completed the study. Results: Results highlight a significant treatment effect within both active and control groups. Post Hoc comparisons of the ITQ demonstrated a significant difference between T1 pre (mean 36.8, SD 14.8) and T2 post (21.2, 15.1) (t11.58) = 15.68, p < 0.001). Further changes were also seen related to co-morbid factors. Post Hoc comparisons of the GAD-7 demonstrated significant difference between T1 pre (11.2, 4.91) and T2 post (6.49, 4.73) (t = 6.22) = 4.41, p < 0.001; with significant difference also with the PHQ-9 between T1 pre (11.7, 5.68) and T2 post (6.64, 5.79) (t = 6.30) = 3.95, p < 0.001, d = 0.71. The treatment effect occurred irrespective of either ACEs/BCEs during childhood. However, regarding Moral Injury, the MIES demonstrated no treatment effect between T1 pre and T5 6-month FU. The study's findings discuss the impact of Group EMDR therapy delivered remotely as video-conference psychotherapy (VCP) and the benefits of including a therapist/rotation model as a means of treatment delivery. However, despite promising results suggesting a large treatment effect in the treatment of trauma and adverse memories, including co-morbid symptoms, research results yielded no treatment effect in frontline/emergency workers in addressing moral injury related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion: The NICE (2018) guidance on PTSD highlighted the paucity of EMDR therapy research used as an early intervention. The primary rationale for this study was to address this critical issue. In summary, treatment results for group EMDR, delivered virtually, intensively, using therapist rotation are tentatively promising, however, the moral dimensions of trauma need consideration for future research, intervention development, and potential for further scalability. The data contributes to the emerging literature on early trauma interventions.Clinical Trial Registration:Clinicaltrials.gov, ISRCTN16933691.

The Frontlines and Margins: Gendered Care and Covid‐19 in the Indian Media

Among the many stories that emerged out of India during the pandemic, one was somewhat buried under the media discourse around the migrant crisis, lockdown regulations, and economic fallout. This was the story of striking accredited social health activist workers asking for fair wages, improved benefits, and better working conditions. The Covid‐19 crisis highlighted the poor health infrastructure and the precarious, and often, stigmatized nature of frontline work, managed at the community level by paramedical workers, a significant proportion of whom are women. There has been considerable attention paid by feminist groups as well as health‐related civil society organizations on the gender‐based inequities that have emerged during the pandemic, particularly in relation to care work. This study explores how care work performed by the accredited social health activists was framed in the mainstream media, through an examination of articles in three selected English daily newspapers over one year of the pandemic. Drawing on theoretical work deriving from similar health crises in other regions of the world, we explore how the public health infrastructure depends on the invisible care‐giving labor of women in official and unofficial capacities to respond to the situation. The systemic reliance on women's unpaid or ill‐paid labor at the grassroots level is belied by the fact that women's concerns and contributions are rarely visible in issues of policy and public administration. Our study found that this invisibility extended to media coverage as well. Our analysis offers a "political economy of caregiving” that reiterates the need for women's work to be recognized at all levels of functioning. © 2023 by the author(s);licensee Cogitatio (Lisbon, Portugal).

The impact of workplace safety and customer misbehavior on supermarket workers' stress and psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic

Purpose: Essential frontline workers in the retail sector face increased exposure risks to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) due to frequent interactions with the general public. Often these interactions are fraught with controversies over public safety protocols. The purpose of this study is to examine the impacts of frontline workers' perceptions of workplace safety and customer misbehaviors on their stress and psychological distress to inform managing workplace health and safety during public health crises. Design/methodology/approach: The authors conducted an online survey of 3,344 supermarket workers in the state of Arizona (US) during the state's first COVID-19 pandemic wave in July 2020. Measures included mental health distress, and perceptions of workplace safety and customer behaviors. The authors utilized a mixed-methods approach combining multiple regression analyses with qualitative analyses of open-ended comments. Findings: Workers reported high rates of stress and psychological distress. Increases in mental health morbidity were correlated with perceptions of being unsafe in the workplace and concerns about negative customer encounters. Qualitative analyses reveal frustration with management's efforts to reduce risks intertwined with feelings of being unsafe and vulnerable to threatening customer encounters. Practical implications: The findings highlight the need to provide and enforce clear safety guidelines, including how to manage potential hostile customer interactions, to promote positive health workplace management during a pandemic. Originality/value: This study is among the first to assess the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on the mental health of non-health care frontline essential workers and presents novel insights regarding perceived customer misbehavior and need for management support and guidance in a public health crisis. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Doubt in store: vaccine hesitancy among grocery workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The objective of this study was to assess the influence of workplace safety conditions alongside the World Health Organization's model of the "3 Cs", on grocery store workers' vaccine hesitancy concerning COVID-19. Data for this study come from the Arizona Frontline Workers Survey, a longitudin web-based survey of 770 grocery store workers in the state of Arizona (US) collected in July 2020 and January 2021. We utilized ordinary least squares and multinomial logistic regression analyses to assess predictors of hesitancy at our Wave 2. Thirty-nine percent of our sample reported being unlikely to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Two aspects of the "3 Cs" model, confidence and convenience, were correlated with lower levels of vaccine hesitancy while the perceptions of being protected by one's employer increased hesitancy. Our findings underscore the importance of workplace conditions for vaccine hesitancy and the need to include vaccine messaging in employers' safety practices.

Tiktoking COVID-19 with frontline workers.

Introduction/Objective: During the COVID-19 pandemic, frontline workers have taken to social media platforms to discuss a variety of issues that concern their personal and professional lives. In particular, TikTok's increased prominence as a social media channel has proved significant for enhancing the public presence of healthcare workers and their ability to disseminate content to a wider audience. The ways that healthcare workers use TikTok draws attention to the type of health information disseminated to the public through social media platforms. This provides the public with succinct and often visually entertaining information that may not be otherwise distributed to them directly from elsewhere. This study also provides relevant insights into how social media-TikTok in particular-can be used as a tool for disseminating knowledge about COVID-19 related topics and combatting misinformation by using the credibility of frontline workers. Methods: This study collected a sample of over 2100 TikTok videos posted by healthcare workers that were coded according to the dominant overarching themes. Results: The themes that arose from this sample were: (1) healthcare workers' mental health and working conditions, (2) healthcare heroes/appreciation, (3) criticism against official authorities, (4) countering misinformation, (5) humor/satire, and (6) educational content. Conclusion: Due to the rise in public appreciation for frontline workers, examining the effects of the pandemic through the eyes of frontline workers has drawn attention to their lived realities in various forms. This study provided some insight into how frontline workers use TikTok to disseminate information and education to the public, often relying on their perceived credibility.

In it together?: Exploring solidarity with frontline workers in the United Kingdom and Ireland during COVID-19.

The phrase 'in it together' has been used liberally since the outbreak of COVID-19, but the extent that frontline workers felt 'in it together' is not well understood. Here, we consider the factors that built (or eroded) solidarity while working through the pandemic, and how frontline workers navigated their lives through periods of disconnection. Semi-structured interviews with 21 frontline workers, across all sectors, were conducted in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The qualitative data were analysed systematically using reflexive thematic analysis. The three themes identified in the data were: (1) Solidarity as central to frontline experiences; (2) Leadership as absent, shallow and divisive: highlighting 'us-them' distinctions and (3) The rise of 'us' and 'we' among colleagues. Our research offers insights into how frontline workers make sense of their experiences of solidarity and discordance during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, with relevance for government and organizational policy-makers shaping future conditions for frontline workers.

Making global health 'work': Frontline workers' labour in research and interventions.

This Special Issue of Global Public Health draws on the concept of 'body work' among those employed to support operationalising, researching, and implementing global health while in direct contact with the bodies of others. This collection brings into sharp focus the specific forms of labour of those occupying positions as frontline workers - those who make global health work. Making Global Health Work includes authors from diverse backgrounds, disciplines, and geographies. Through compelling ethnographies, qualitative interviews, and focus group discussions, they explore 'body work' globally, including: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Malawi, Myanmar, Nigeria, Nepal, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Tanzania, Thailand, The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), The Gambia, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe. These papers demonstrate that proximity to, and work on, the bodies of others engenders specific forms of (physical, emotional, mental, social, ethical, and political) labour, which occur not only in emergencies and pandemics, but also throughout the quotidian practice of global health. Making Global Health Work provides insights into the provision of maternal healthcare, treatment of multidrug resistant tuberculosis, rapid HIV testing programmes, sleeping sickness and polio eradication campaigns, mass drug administration clinical trials, epidemic preparedness and response, and the management and care of dead bodies. These papers argue for greater attention by global health actors on frontline workers in management of the complexities involved in making global health work.

Feeling Informed and Safe Are Important Factors in the Psychosomatic Health of Frontline Workers in the Health Sector during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Austria.

The global spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has created new challenges for the entire healthcare system, and those who work directly with the patients or even on the front lines with COVID-19 patients have been particularly stressed. Only a few studies are currently available investigating psychosomatic symptoms among healthcare workers, particularly frontline workers, over the entire pandemic period (2020-2022). There is also a lack of knowledge about strategies to prevent stress during and after a health crisis. METHODS: An online survey was conducted at three times (April 2020, winter 2020/2021, and winter 2021/2022) during the COVID-19 pandemic in Austria. The sample included 160 healthcare workers at screening time 1, 1.361 healthcare workers at screening time 2, and 1.134 healthcare workers at screening time 3. The survey included COVID-19 work-related fears, satisfaction with the frontline work, and standardized inventories to assess psychosomatic symptoms, such as the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-D). RESULTS: Psychosomatic symptoms were more common among women compared to men, and among frontline workers compared to non-frontline workers, especially during the course of the pandemic at t2 and t3. Self-reported scores of COVID-19 work-related fears were significantly associated with psychosomatic symptoms. Furthermore, in frontline workers, there was a significant association between the feeling of being safe and well-informed and psychosomatic symptoms. CONCLUSION: COVID-19 work-related fears and psychosomatic symptoms have been prevalent among healthcare workers throughout the pandemic. Feeling safe and informed appears to be essential to prevent psychosomatic symptoms, leading to a recommendation for employers in the healthcare sector to focus on communication and information. As frontline workers are especially prone to psychosomatic symptoms, more stress prevention programs for them will be essential to maintain productivity and reduce sick days and fluctuations in the healthcare system.

Risk Factors for Reinfection with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant among Previously Infected Frontline Workers.

In a cohort of essential workers in the United States previously infected with SARS-CoV-2, risk factors for reinfection included being unvaccinated, infrequent mask use, time since first infection, and being non-Hispanic Black. Protecting workers from reinfection requires a multipronged approach including up-to-date vaccination, mask use as recommended, and reduction in underlying health disparities.

Suicide in health care workers during the covid-19 pandemic in India

Background As we all know, the globe, including India, is dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. It has caused a slew of psychological issues for millions of people. Healthcare workers remain the most vulnerable group only next to the general population for psychological impact due to COVID-19. Though there is an array of psychological issues suicidal behavior as a result of COVID-19 remains an important aspect of identification and management. Objective To assess the prevalence of suicidal behavior in frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods The literature search was conducted using a combination of medical subject headings (Mesh) and free text terms. From December 2019 to August 2021, a search was done in all databases with no restriction of language. As a part of the primary screening, the research studies which involved the assessment of depression, anxiety, stress, sleep disturbances, traumatic stress, and psychological impact were encompassed. Regardless of the scale used for assessment, studies describing any of the aforementioned results were assessed. Later on, only studies that assessed suicidality were further screened and included in the review. Conclusion Healthcare workers were at high risk of suicidal behavior due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Those with pre-existing psychiatric illness were at higher risk of developing suicidal ideations. Copyright © 2022, Australasian Medical Journal Pty Ltd. All rights reserved.

A research study to understand the impact of pandemic on healthcare workers

The Covid-19 pandemic has shaken up the entire human race as it has led to more than 2.9 million deaths globally, as reported by Johns Hopkins University's Covid-19 Dashboard on April 2021. This pandemic has shaken the entire world and we are still not 'out of woods' yet. Globally, 136 mn patients have been affected by this pandemic and the healthcare infrastructure is in overdrive now. Healthcare workers are our first responders in these adverse times and the irony is that this is also significantly affecting them. A question, which needs consideration is, if our healthcare workers i.e. frontline doctors and nursing staff are succumbed to this situation, then who will save the humankind. This question needs to be answered by looking from the research perspective as to why healthcare workers and care providers are most vulnerable in these pandemic situations and why there is so much mortality in that group. We have tried to understand the key reasons behind this high mortality rate by qualitative review.

"I'm sick of being called a hero - I want to get paid like one": Filipino American frontline workers' health under conditions of COVID-19 and racial capitalism.

Although the era of COVID-19 has reaffirmed the vital role of frontline workers in maintaining a functional society, the ongoing pandemic has taken a devastating toll on their health and well-being. In the United States, Filipino American frontline workers in healthcare and service industries have endured threats to their health, safety, and economic livelihood throughout the pandemic and against the broader backdrop of racialized and xenophobic hate directed toward Asian Americans. Drawing on a qualitative approach, the current study explores work-related health risks and effects of the pandemic for Filipino American frontline workers. Data come from the qualitative arm of a larger mixed-methods study that used a community-based participatory research approach. The current analysis is based on focus group data with thirty-five Filipino American frontline workers, a majority of whom were migrants, that worked across healthcare, caregiving, education, childcare, food services, and retail industries. Situated through the lens of racial capitalism, themes included: (1) work-related stress, tensions, and trauma, (2) anti-Asian racism and intersections with age- and gender-based violence, and (3) working while ill and distressed. Study findings can inform interventions and policies to improve health, occupational environments, and labor conditions in order to support minoritized communities disproportionately affected by COVID-19.