The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of healthcare workers:study protocol for the COVID-19 HEalth caRe wOrkErS (HEROES) study

BACKGROUND: Preliminary country-specific reports suggest that the COVID-19 pandemic has a negative impact on the mental health of the healthcare workforce. In this paper, we summarize the protocol of the COVID-19 HEalth caRe wOrkErS (HEROES) study, an ongoing, global initiative, aimed to describe and track longitudinal trajectories of mental health symptoms and disorders among health care workers at different phases of the pandemic across a wide range of countries in Latin America, Europe, Africa, Middle-East, and Asia. METHODS: Participants from various settings, including primary care clinics, hospitals, nursing homes, and mental health facilities, are being enrolled. In 26 countries, we are using a similar study design with harmonized measures to capture data on COVID-19 related exposures and variables of interest during two years of follow-up. Exposures include potential stressors related to working in healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as sociodemographic and clinical factors. Primary outcomes of interest include mental health variables such as psychological distress, depressive symptoms, and posttraumatic stress disorders. Other domains of interest include potentially mediating or moderating influences such as workplace conditions, trust in the government, and the country’s income level. RESULTS: As of August 2021, ~ 34,000 health workers have been recruited. A general characterization of the recruited samples by sociodemographic and workplace variables is presented. Most participating countries have identified several health facilities where they can identify denominators and attain acceptable response rates. Of the 26 countries, 22 are collecting data and 2 plan to start shortly. CONCLUSIONS: This is one of the most extensive global studies on the mental health of healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, including a variety of countries with diverse economic realities and different levels of severity of pandemic and management. Moreover, unlike most previous studies, we included workers (clinical and non-clinical staff) in a wide range of settings. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00127-021-02211-9

Burnout syndrome and common mental disorders among community health workers in Sao Paulo

Introdução - O Programa de Saúde da Família (PSF) é atualmente responsável pelo cuidado da saúde de 86,7 milhões de pessoas, empregando um grande contingente de profissionais, dentre eles os agentes comunitários de saúde (ACS). O trabalho dos ACS envolve particularidades que podem estar associadas a grandes pressões e dificuldades na realização de suas atribuições. Objetivo - Investigar a ocorrência da síndrome do esgotamento profissional e de transtornos mentais comuns em agentes comunitários de saúde do PSF do município de São Paulo e estudar possíveis fatores associados. Método - estudo transversal com 141 agentes comunitários em 6 unidades básicas de saúde da região centro-oeste. Três questionários foram aplicados: características sociodemográficas e do trabalho, o Self Reporting Questionnaire e o Maslach Burnout Inventory. Foi utilizada a regressão logística multivariada para verificar associações independentes. Resultados - Níveis moderados ou altos de exaustão emocional foram observados em 70,9% dos participantes, de despersonalização em 34% e decepção em 47,5%. A prevalência de TMC foi 43,3% (IC95% 35,0 a 51,5). A análise multivariada evidenciou os fatores de risco para os desfechos: a) exaustão emocional: níveis de decepção moderado ou alto b) despersonalização: ter exaustão moderada ou alta e possuir 20% da população cadastrada na microárea com destino do lixo queimado ou a céu aberto; c) decepção: exaustão emocional moderada ou alta; d) transtorno mental comum: exaustão moderada ou alta e decepção moderada ou alta. Conclusões - A elevada ocorrência de transtornos mentais comuns e de níveis intensos de esgotamento profissional nos agentes comunitários de saúde suscitam a necessidade de estratégias de intervenção individuais e organizacionais e de novas investigações sobre determinantes de esgotamento profissional e TMC nessa categoria de trabalhadores.Aim: To investigate the occurrence of burnout syndrome and common mental disorders among community health workers from the Family Health Program in the city of Sao Paulo and to study associated factors. Method: A cross-sectional survey with 141 community health workers who had been on that activity for at least 6 months in 6 primary care units was carried out. We used 3 questionnaires: socio-demographic and work-related characteristics, the Self Reportinging Questionnaire, and Maslach Burnout Inventory, which allows the assessment of 3 dimensions of burnout: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and reduced personal accomplishment. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine independence of associations. Results: Moderate or high levels of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and reduced personal accomplishment were observed among 70.9%, 34.0% and 47.5% of the participants, respectively. The prevalence of common mental disorders was 43.3%. We observed positive correlations among 3 dimensions of burnout. Presence of common mental disorder was independently associated with high levels of emotional exhaustion and reduced personal accomplishment. Conclusions: The high frequency of intense levels of burnout and the high prevalence of common mental disorders among community health agents point to the need of strategies for improving their working conditions and further studies to understand better the present picture and the determinants of burnout in this group of health workers

Burnout and depression in primary health care workers in São Paulo, Brazil

Introdução: A implantação da Atenção Primária à Saúde tem sido prioridade em países de baixa e média renda. No Brasil, a estratégia saúde da família (ESF) foi criada para reorganizar o modelo de Atenção Primária e, atualmente, cerca de 39 mil equipes de saúde da família são responsáveis pelo cuidado de 121 milhões de pessoas no país. Apesar do grande contingente de trabalhadores da saúde na ESF, pouco se pesquisou sobre a saúde mental desses trabalhadores. Esses trabalhadores atuam dentro das comunidades e estão na porta de entrada do sistema de saúde, sendo submetidos a grandes pressões, com repercussões na sua saúde mental, como depressão e esgotamento profissional (burnout), que afetam o trabalhador e a qualidade do cuidado prestado, podendo ameaçar a sustentabilidade da Atenção Primária. Objetivos: Investigar a prevalência de depressão e de esgotamento profissional em trabalhadores da ESF do município de São Paulo e examinar características individuais e relacionadas ao trabalho que podem estar associadas a essas condições. Método: Foi realizado um estudo transversal no município de São Paulo [PANDORA-SP (Panorama of Primary Health Care Workers in São Paulo, Brazil: Depression, Organizational Justice, Violence at Work, and Burnout Assessments)], que avaliou 2.940 trabalhadores da ESF. Sintomas depressivos foram avaliados através do Patient Health Questionnaire - 9 (PHQ-9) e, para investigar esgotamento, utilizou-se o Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). Foi analisada a associação de depressão com as seguintes variáveis de exposição: violência no trabalho e estresse no trabalho (modelo demanda-controle). A regressão logística multinomial foi utilizada para investigar as associações entre sintomas depressivos e as variáveis individuais e do trabalho. As associações do esgotamento profissional com as características fatores individuais e as contextuais foram avaliadas através da análise multinível, que examinou as relações entre três níveis: nível 1(variáveis individuais), nível 2 (variável relacionada à da equipe) e nível 3 (características da Unidade Básica de Saúde). Resultados: As prevalências de sintomas depressivos intermediários e provável depressão maior foram, respectivamente, 36,3% (IC95%: 34,6-38,1) e 16,0% (IC95%:14,6-17,2). De acordo com a análise multinomial, as variáveis associadas a maior odds ratio para sintomas depressivos/provável depressão maior foram: sexo feminino, pertencer ao grupo etário 18 a 29 anos, ter vivenciado um ou mais eventos de vida relacionado ao estresse nos últimos 12 meses, ser agente comunitário de saúde, exposição à violência no trabalho, não receber feedback dos superiores, ter apoio social baixo, e ter tipo de trabalho passivo, ativo ou de alto desgaste. Em relação ao esgotamento profissional, 47,7% (IC95%: 45,9-49,5) dos participantes apresentaram nível moderado e 11,7% (IC95%: 10,5-12,8) nível grave. A regressão multinível mostrou que as variáveis individuais (idade, tempo de trabalho na ESF, trabalhar em área vulnerável, profissão e feedback dos supervisores) e as variáveis do contexto (UBS) contribuíram de forma independente para explicar a variância na prevalência de esgotamento nos participantes. Conclusões: As elevadas prevalências de depressão e esgotamento têm implicações para os profissionais da ESF e para os gestores. Os profissionais que apresentam depressão e/ou esgotamento precisam ser reconhecidos e tratados. As estratégias para prevenir essas condições devem incluir intervenções nas condições de trabalhoIntroduction: The implementation of Primary Care has been a priority in lowmiddle- income countries. In Brazil, the Ministry of Health created the Family Health Strategy (FHS) in order to reorganize the primary care model. The FHS currently comprises over 39,000 primary care teams, and covers more than 121 million people across the country, and is still expanding. Although lots of health workers are involved in the FHS, research studying the mental health of these professionals is scarce. Primary care workers regularly perform activities outside health centers, and work directly within the communities. They are the \'gatekeepers\' of health systems, responsible for guaranteeing accessibility. Considering this context, these workers are often under high pressure, which can have repercussions on their mental health, such as depression and burnout. These conditions may affect workers and their jobs, and can threaten primary care sustainability. Objectives: To estimate the prevalence of depressive symptoms, probable major depression and burnout in primary care workers in the city of São Paulo, and also, to investigate whether individual characteristics and job variables are associated with these conditions. Method: A cross-sectional study was carried out in the city of São Paulo [PANDORA-SP (Panorama of Primary Health Care Workers in São Paulo, Brazil: Depression, Organizational Justice, Violence at Work, and Burnout Assessments)], that evaluated 2,940 primary care workers from the FHS. Depressive symptoms and major depression were investigated using the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and burnout was assessed using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). The associations of violence at work, job strain (demand-control model), and covariates with depression were analyzed using multinomial regression. The associations of participants\' characteristics and contextual variables with burnout were analyzed using multilevel regression, which had three levels. The first level of the analyses was participants\' characteristics, the second level was teams\' variables and the third level was the primary care centers\' characteristics. Results: The prevalence of depressive symptoms and probable major depression were 36.3% (CI95%: 34.6-38.1) and 16.0% (CI95%: 14.6-17.2), respectively. According to the multinomial regression, the variables that were independently associated with higher odds ratios for depressive symptoms and probable major depression were gender (female), age group from 18 to 29 years old, had one or more stressful life events in the previous 12 months, type of profession (community health agents), length of employment in FHS, those who reported exposure to violence at work, not receiving performance feedback from their supervisor, and currently having a passive, active or high strain job. Regarding burnout, 47.7% (CI95%: 45.9-49.5) of participants presented moderate burnout, and 11.7% (CI95%: 10.5-12.8) severe burnout. Multilevel regression showed that variables in the first and third levels were independently associated with burnout. In the first level (individual), these variables were age group, length of employment in FHS, working in deprived areas, type of profession, and performance feedback from supervisor. In the third level (primary care center), burnout variance within the sample was partially explained by the contextual variables. Conclusions: High rates of depressive symptoms, probable major depression, and moderate/severe burnout have implications for primary care workers and for health system managers. Workers with depression and/or burnout need to be recognized and assisted. Strategies to prevent these conditions should include interventions to modify job characteristics associated with burnout and depressio

Prevalence and correlates of depressive symptoms among adults living in the Amazon, Brazil: a population-based study

Depression is an affective disorder and one of the main contributors to the burden of disease worldwide. Our purpose is to estimate the prevalence of depressive symptoms and associated factors in the population of the Manaus Metropolitan Region. We conducted a population-based, cross-sectional study with a probabilistic three-phase sampling in 2015, based on a previously calculated sample size. Adults living in Manaus and seven inner cities of the metropolitan region were surveyed for depressive symptoms using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and a cutoff score of ≥ 9. We performed a Poisson regression with robust variance using a hierarchical approach to calculate the prevalence ratio (PR) of depression and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Among 4001 participants (response rate 76%), the prevalence of current depressive symptoms was 7% (95% CI: 6–8%). Depressive symptoms were more frequent in inhabitants of Manaus than in those from the countryside (PR = 6.13, 95% CI: 2.91–12.91); in women than in men (PR = 2.55, 95% CI: 1.96–3.33); in indigenous than in white people (PR = 2.56, 95% CI: 1.24–5.30); and in those with hypertension (PR = 1.47, 95% CI: 1.13–1.92), cardiac disease (PR = 1.62, 95% CI: 1.12–2.33), and poor health status (fair: PR = 5.10, 95% CI: 2.50–10.37; bad: PR = 10.27, 95% CI: 4.92–21.44 very bad: PR = 21.14, CI 95%: 10.16–43.99). High school education (PR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.32–0.95) and middle class economic status (PR = 0.33, 95% CI: 0.12–0.89) were protective factors. Limitations include the lack of measurement of physical activity, religious beliefs, leisure time, and use of alcohol and other drugs since these factors can affect depression and health status. Seven out of every 100 adults from the Manaus Metropolitan Region have depressive symptoms. This rate is higher in women, individuals living in Manaus, indigenous people, people with hypertension or chronic cardiac disease, and those with a poor health status.222162168CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQ404990/2013-4; 448093/2014-