Unmasking the Truth of Health Care Workers' Well-being During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Burnout is a well-documented multifactorial phenomenon that affects up to 47% of intensive care unit staff at some point in their career. The literature highlights increased rates of anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder among staff as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. LOCAL PROBLEM: Following the second and, at the time of writing, largest surge of the COVID-19 pandemic, concern for staff 's mental health prompted a hospital-wide study to assess depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, and alcohol misuse and to determine the use and effectiveness of employee resources. METHODS: Through REDCap, 212 intensive care unit employees were surveyed with validated screening tools for depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, and alcohol misuse. The use and perceived effectiveness of hospital initiatives were assessed. RESULTS: A total of 212 surveys were evaluated. Among respondents, 54% experienced mild anxiety, more than 50% screened positive for mild depression, and 37% screened positive for posttraumatic stress disorder. Most employees (74.5%) were aware of at least 1 resource; 37% knew of the COVID-19 newsletter, one of the top resources highlighted in the survey. Perceived effectiveness of resources ranged from 0.9% (disaster helpline) to 82.5% (prayers, readings, and the on-call chaplain-all "somewhat helpful"). The results correlate with the progressive trend of increased mental health concerns among intensive care unit employees. Survey results prompted an expansion of hospital resources. CONCLUSIONS: COVID-19 has brought unique mental health challenges and stressors to intensive care unit staff. By adapting and expanding resources, hospitals can improve staff resiliency and mitigate some mental health concerns with the aim of decreasing the overall psychological impact of the pandemic.

Guillain-Barre Syndrome in a Patient With Asymptomatic Coronavirus Disease 2019 Infection and Major Depressive Disorder.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has had a devastating effect on all aspects of society, including the economy, healthcare, and educational institutions. One underrecognized effect of the pandemic is the decline of mental health in our communities. Studies have shown that pandemic-related stress is associated with increased depression and anxiety. In addition to worsening mental health, COVID-19 infection has been shown to have neurological manifestations. We report the case of a 56-year-old woman with a history of major depressive disorder and alcohol use with no recent history of infection or vaccination who presented with hand and foot paresthesias over the past six weeks, 30 lb weight loss, dysphoric mood, and acutely progressive ambulatory dysfunction over the past two weeks, for which she required assistance to ambulate. Psychiatric evaluation was significant for depressive symptoms. On neurologic examination, she had decreased deep tendon reflexes and ataxic, jerky gait. She was found to be positive for COVID-19. Labs and findings demonstrated albuminocytologic dissociation which suggests presumptive diagnosis of Guillain-Barre syndrome, prompting treatment with intravenous immunoglobulin for five days. She was noted to be deficient in zinc, folate, copper, and borderline B-12, as well as mild hyponatremia, hypokalemia, and hypomagnesemia likely secondary to depression-induced loss of appetite and alcohol use disorder. Guillain-Barre is a severe and debilitating outcome that must be considered when evaluating neuromuscular weakness in the setting of COVID-19, even in asymptomatic patients. Our case highlights the multifactorial intersection between Guillain-Barre syndrome, COVID-19, and concomitant mental health and alcohol use disorder.

Posttraumatic stress disorder after myocardial infarction and coronary artery bypass grafting.

Post traumatic stress disorder is a psychiatric disease that is usually precipitated by life threatening stressors. Myocardial infarction, especially in the young can count as one such event. The development of post traumatic stress after a coronary event not only adversely effects psychiatric health, but leads to increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. There is increasing evidence that like major depression, post traumatic stress disorder is also a strong coronary risk factor. Early diagnosis and treatment of this disease in patients with acute manifestations of coronary artery disease can improve patient outcomes.