Joanne Wang

School: The University of Chicago

Major: Neuroscience

DOI: https://doi.org/10.21985/n2-1k54-ad34

Biography:

Joanne is a second-year student at The University of Chicago studying Neuroscience on a Pre-Medicine track. She works as a research assistant for the Primary Care-Behavioral Health Integration Program with Dr. Laiteerapong at UChicago Medicine. In her role, she works to expand the scope of primary care to include mental health screenings and treatment. At the University of Chicago, she volunteers with United Against Inequalities in Disease (UAID) and is trained as an Emergency Medical Responder. After graduation, Joanne hopes to attend medical school and pursue a career as a pediatrician. In her free time, she likes to go for walks and bike rides along the Lakefront Trail.

Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Rates of Health Care Worker Secondary Traumatic Stress and Burnout

Existing research from prior pandemics suggests that the COVID-19 crisis will likely have a substantially adversial impact on the well-being of health care workers (HCW) [1]. But the effect of COVID-19 on rates of secondary traumatic stress (STS) and burnout in HCW has not been fully examined. The objective of this study is to examine how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted STS and burnout rates in HCW and how these rates are affected by number of COVID+ cases, job type, departmental exposure to COVID+ patients, and confidence in Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) use. Data collection was part of an approved quality improvement project at UChicago Medicine. HCW (N=479) were surveyed using a Professional Quality of Life instrument with burnout and STS subscales between March and July 2020. Job types were created based on self-reported job description and departments were categorized based on likely patient COVID+ exposure. The continuous predictors were self-reported confidence in PPE use and the seven-day rolling average of city COVID+ cases on the date of survey completion. There was no observed effect of the number of COVID+ cases on burnout or STS. Job type was significantly associated with burnout (F[4,436]=2.40, p=.05) and STS (F[4,436]=6.32, p<.001). Non-clinical staff scored higher on both measures. Department-level COVID+ exposure was associated with burnout (F[2,436]=8.06, p<.001) but not STS; low COVID+ contact departments reported less burnout. Confidence in PPE use was associated with lower burnout (b=-1.13, se=.12, t436=-9.23, p<.001) and STS (b=-0.91, se=.13, t436=-7.23, p<.001). The main finding is that non-clinical staff have higher rates of burnout and STS. Departments with more exposure to COVID+ patients were associated with higher levels of burnout but not STS. Confidence in PPE use was also found to predict lower burnout and STS. The results reveal opportunities to promote resilience in the ongoing COVID-19 and in future pandemics. 

References:

[1] Preti, E., Di Mattei, V., Perego, G., Ferrari, F., Mazzetti, M., Taranto, P., Di Pierro, R., Madeddu, F., & Calati, R. (2020). The Psychological Impact of Epidemic and Pandemic Outbreaks on Healthcare Workers: Rapid Review of the Evidence. Current Psychiatry Reports, 22(8), 43–43. PubMed. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-020-01166-z

Author Q&A

What is your research topic, in a nutshell? 

My research topic studies how COVID-19 affects the well-being of health care workers (HCW). Specifically, the secondary traumatic stress and burnout rates in HCW. My topic  focuses on how factors such as the number of overall COVID+ cases, job type, job  department, and confidence in personal protective equipment can affect secondary  traumatic stress and burnout rates. 

How did you come to your research topic?  

This past summer, I served as a Community and Social Medicine Fellow with Dr. Neda  Laiteerapong at the University of Chicago Medical Center. At that time, there were  multiple news articles explaining the mental toll that the COVID-19 pandemic had on  HCW. I wanted to learn more about how different job types and other factors affected  the severity of the mental toll on HCW. By doing this, I hoped that we could reveal which  HCW required the most attention or resources.  

Where do you see the future direction of this work leading (how might future  researchers build on your work or what is left to discover in this field)?  

I hope that researchers can build on this work to develop specific system-wide changes  that can address the results. For example, hosting PPE use trainings because confidence in PPE was shown to decrease rates of secondary traumatic stress and  burnout. Other examples include wellness check-ins or HCW support groups. I see our  research being used as evidence that interventions for HCW well-being are necessary  for effective patient care. 

Where are you heading to after graduation?  

After graduation, I hope to take a gap year before attending medical school to pursue a  career as a physician. During my gap year, I hope to conduct clinical or biological  research