Potential strategies for supporting mental health and mitigating the risk of burnout among healthcare professionals: insights from the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Healthcare professionals (HCPs) experienced prolonged stressful conditions during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, and the global situation (particularly in the United Kingdom) meant that they continue to sustain mental stress related to the subsequent cost-of-living and healthcare budgeting crises. The psychological toll on HCPs may lead to increased staff attrition, adversely impacting the quality of patient care and work security. To help mitigate this psychological impact, the current evidence is strongly supportive of healthcare providers consistently adopting programmes fostering improvement in coping and resilience, facilitating healthy lifestyle, and allocating some resources for therapeutic strategies (e.g. cognitive behavioural therapy-based strategies and other strategies specified to trauma-related issues) which can be delivered by trained professionals. We stress that some approaches are not a one-size-fits-all strategy, and we also highlight the need to encourage treatment-seeking among those who need it. These strategies are highly relevant to healthcare employers and policymakers to support all HCPs in settings marked by prolonged periods of stress. The investment in these strategies are expected not only to reduce staff attrition in the long-term, but are likely to add to the cost-effectiveness of overall healthcare budgetary allocation.

Keywords: Burnout; Coronavirus; Depression; Healthcare professionals; Mental health; Occupational stress; Prevention; Psychological stress; Strategies.

Fig. 1

Strategies that have been shown to be effective in reducing the risk of adverse mental health impact amongst healthcare professionals. The diagram summarises the three strategies (non-hierarchical) that can be organised by healthcare employers to support the mental health and mental wellbeing of healthcare professionals: (1) preservative strategies via support programmes implemented by the employer, (2) healthy lifestyle facilitated by the employer and self-delivered by the individual, and (3) early and easy access to the tailored therapeutic interventions on an individual basis delivered by trained mental health professionals.