Beyond the physical risk: Psychosocial impact and coping in healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic

Aims and objectives This study aimed to examine the psychosocial impact and identify risk factors for poor psychosocial outcomes in healthcare professionals during the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in Cyprus. Background Healthcare professionals are in the forefront of the COVID-19 pandemic facing an unprecedented global health crisis, which can have consequences on their psychosocial health. There is a need to identify risk factors for poor psychosocial outcomes to inform the design of tailored psychological interventions. Design Cross-sectional online study. Methods A total of 1071 healthcare professionals completed self-report questionnaires. Measures included sociodemographic information, COVID-19-related characteristics, quality of life (Brief World Health Organization Quality of Life; WHOQOL-Bref), anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7; GAD-7), depression (Patient Health Questionnaire-8; PHQ-8), occupational burnout (Copenhagen Burnout Inventory; CBI), and coping (Brief Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced; Brief COPE). This article follows the STROBE reporting guidelines. Results The prevalence of moderate to severe anxiety and clinically significant depression was 27.6% and 26.8%, respectively. Significant risk factors for poor psychological outcomes included being female, being a nurse or doctor (vs non-medical professional), working in frontline units (inpatient, intensive care), perceptions of inadequate workplace preparation to deal with the pandemic, and using avoidance coping. Depression and occupational burnout were significant risk factors for poor quality of life. Conclusion The findings suggest several individual, psychosocial, and organisational risk factors for the adverse psychological outcomes observed in healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Relevance to clinical practice This study highlights the urgent need for screening for anxiety and depression and psychological interventions to combat an imminent mental health crisis in healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pandemic response protocols and public health initiatives aiming to improve and prevent mental health problems in healthcare professionals during the current and future health crises, need to account for the various factors at play

Study of the influence of the surfactants on the size distribution and the mass ratio of wheat starch granules by Sedimentation/Steric Field – Flow Fractionation

The determination of the particle size distribution and mass ratio of two types (small and large) of starch granules is of great significance in the food industry, since the size of the granules influences the gelatinization, digestibility and thermomechanical behavior of starch. In order to achieve that, the ideal experimental conditions for sample analysis should be determined. The influence of the various surfactants (FL-70, a mixture of anionic and nonionic surfactants; Triton X-100, a nonionic surfactant; and SDS, an ionic surfactant) used during the analysis on these results was investigated, as the chemical structure of the suspending medium affects the interaction forces between the starch granules themselves, as well as the starch granules and the accumulation wall. Two different mathematical methodologies were applied, which were found to lead to approximately similar conclusions concerning the mass ratio of starch granules. The kind of detergent used was found to have a strong influence on the results of the experimental analysis. The total experimental procedure was performed by sedimentation field-flow fractionation (SdFFF). The results were compared with those obtained by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) or with those found in the literature