The relationship between corona phobia and burnout in critical care nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic: A narrative review

Abstract

Corona phobia is a term used to explain apprehension and fear associated with COVID-19. Meanwhile, nurses, particularly those working in intensive care units, have a higher frequency of corona phobia and related consequences. Due to the significant prevalence of burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic, this narrative review was conducted to summarize all published articles about the relationship between corona phobia and burnout in critical care nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. A literature search was conducted using keywords extracted from medical subject headings such as “Corona Phobia”, “Burnout”, “Critical Care Nurses”, and “COVID-19” through online electronic databases including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase from December 1, 2019 to May 12, 2023. Finally, 15 studies met our inclusion criteria. Fainting, tonic immobility, sleeplessness, despair, traumatic stress, hopelessness, and suicidal thoughts are all symptoms associated with corona phobia. Among the reasons for the high incidence of corona phobia among intensive care nurses the high rate of patient admission, workload, and death were mostly mentioned. With these interpretations and considering that several studies pointed to a positive relationship between corona phobia and job burnout, it can be said that the rate of job burnout in nurses in intensive care units during the COVID-19 era was higher than in other nurses. As stated in the research results, a strong correlation exists between corona phobia and occupational burnout. Corona phobia was significantly associated with job positions, professional experience in caring for infectious patients, hospital resources, age, marital status, duration of employment, and degree of education.