COVID-19 AND MENTAL ISSUES IN HEALTH CARE WORRIORS

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The past two years have been coupled with absurdities, incongruences and oddities. Many healthcare workers had to work long shifts and under high-pressure situations. Many of them have been exposed to trauma and have had to deal with long term psychological consequences.

Lack of resources, risk of transmission, increased workload and stigmatization in society severely affected the mental well-being of the health care workers during the rise of the Covid19 pandemic. Many had to encounter ethical dilemmas of choosing between severities and prioritising patients regularly. Many new trainees were put on the field due to the shortage of workforce and have worked without any remuneration or even proper guidance regarding handling patients.

There have been several instances of health care workers being evicted or threatened by anxious property owners and neighbours because of their profession. They had to face a cruel stance from their friends and acquaintances which led to situations of being secluded by society. Many doctors and medical interns had been reported to have died by suicide in the wake of the pandemic.

Female caregivers had to endure an extra hurdle of being in PPE suits for long hours even during their periods without any bathroom breaks. It is indeed paramount to identify the anxiety, stress and agonies of people associated with the health care field so that it doesn’t further lead to a heightened scale of depression or dejection and ultimately end up provoking suicidal thoughts. The absence of official counselling had left many health care workers miserable and susceptible to depression.

The observations attempted in this paper would apply to health care providers, employed in clinical services like doctors, pharmacists, nurses, community health workers. This may also apply to other social care workers in supporting roles such as ambulance drivers or hospital staff who have contact with patients.