Emotional overload of health personnel of the Navarra Health Service during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic

Abstract

Health care workers faced unprecedented levels of emotional burden related to the COVID-19 pandemic.. This study aims to find out the self-perception of the state of emotional overload of the professionals of the Navarre Osasunbidea Health Service (SNS-O) at two moments during the pandemic and its associated factors. Cross-sectional study using a questionnaire that includes the Emotional Overload Self-Assessment Scale sent by email to all SNS-O health professionals at two moments of the pandemic, in October 2020 and October 2021. Results of the global scale and of the subscales '"fear-anxiety"' and ""affective response"' were compared between the two moments of measurement according to position, field, area and service using ANCOVA models. The number of responding participants in the 2020 survey was 1 485 (11,3%) and 950 in the 2021 survey (7,3%). The mean difference for overall score between 2020 and 2021 was -1.87 (95% CI: -2.38, -1.35), indicating less worrying results with the passage of time since the start of the pandemic, with some differences accross occupational categories. The year 2020 had a great impact on the emotional overload that decreased the following year. One of the greatest fears of health personnel during their occupational exposure to epidemic infectious diseases continues to be the fear of contracting the disease and transmitting it to their family members and social environment. As the proximity to the patient and their environment increases, the probability of psycho-emotional affectation increases.