Lessons From the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Role of Interventions in Relieving Mental Stress.

BACKGROUND

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted healthcare workers' mental health worldwide. Although increased stress, anxiety, and burnout are well documented, there is limited evidence on the effectiveness of workplace interventions such as infection prevention and control (IPC) and personal protective equipment (PPE) training in mitigating these effects.

AIM: To examine the association between IPC training, PPE training, and consistent adherence to safety protocols with self-reported mental health outcomes among healthcare workers in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS

This study analyzed data from 12,727 healthcare workers who responded to a 2021 Statistics Canada crowdsource survey. Logistic regression models assessed the relationship between mental health status (same/better vs worse compared to pre-pandemic) and three predictors: sufficient IPC training, sufficient PPE training, and consistent protocol adherence, controlling for demographic and occupational factors.

RESULTS

Adequate IPC and PPE training, along with consistent adherence to protocols, were significantly associated with better self-reported mental health outcomes across healthcare worker groups. Regional differences and survey design limitations affecting generalizability are acknowledged.

CONCLUSIONS

Basic workplace interventions such as IPC and PPE training and adherence to safety protocols may help protect healthcare workers' mental health during public health crises. Policymakers should prioritize these feasible, low-cost measures to mitigate pandemic-related psychological distress.