Extended Summary

Aim

Due to the working environment and working conditions, the group with the highest risk of getting diseases such as coronavirus has been the healthcare workers. Despite this risk, healthcare workers continued to fight the disease by risking their lives in all emerging pandemics. However, considering that healthcare professionals are also human beings, they have had to deal with both the frequency of exposure to extreme stress brought about by pandemics and the psychological reflections of such situations for a considerable time. Healthcare workers, who have been at the forefront of the fight against the Covid-19 global pandemic that has been going on for nearly two years, have encountered the constant risk of infection with a higher workload and long working hours. Compared to many other sectors, the lack of remote working opportunities puts healthcare workers at great risk. Accordingly, this study aims to determine the psychosocial effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic process on healthcare workers.

Method

In this qualitative research, we conducted face-to-face interviews via a semi-structured interview technique in the hospitals and health centers serving in the city center and districts of Erzincan in October 2021. In this context, we interviewed 25 healthcare professionals (nine are doctors (four family physicians), five nurses, five paramedics, two midwives, two medical secretaries and two cleaning staffs). Besides, 15 of the healthcare workers participating in the research are females and 10 are males. We benefited from maximum variation sampling in this study, which is one of the purposive sampling methods. While the average age is 37.4 years, the average of being in this profession is about seven years. As a result of a detailed literature review, besides the questions about working conditions during the Covid-19 pandemic, other interview questions about depression, anxiety, and stress; life satisfaction, continuous anxiety levels, and burnout also prepared. The interviews were conducted outside of working hours by making an appointment with the participants, and each interview lasted approximately 30-45 minutes. In this context, the phenomenological design, which is one of the qualitative research methods, employed in the research. In the data analysis process, we followed a descriptive way (stress/depression/anxiety, exclusion, burnout, working environment and conditions, coping method).

Findings

Within the framework of the findings obtained in the research; we can argue that the pace of work has been intensified compared to the pre-pandemic period. In the classification of this intensity, it has been determined that the size of the unit worked or the size of the residential area is of great importance. Another remarkable finding was that there has been a noticeable increase in the stress levels of the participants. We have observed that increased stress causes negative feelings towards life in people, as well as an increase in depression and anxiety levels. Another finding is that social exclusion/stigma is being applied intensively to healthcare workers during this period. We have observed that this situation is not only limited to healthcare workers but also extended to their families. In another finding, we saw that the participants have intensely been questioning their profession, work, and life, and burnout syndrome has been emerging. In the last finding, regarding the management of negative situations during the Covid-19 Pandemic period, it was observed that most of the participants tried to relax by devoting their time to their families, while others tried to minimise the destructive effects of this period by various exercises (yoga, meditation, etc.). Again, it was observed that many of the participants tried to get away from the devastating effect created in the working environment by methods such as reading books, watching TV series and movies.

Conclusion

In this study, we attempted to examine the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on healthcare workers working in a province. Our major results are as follows: 1- we determined that the working environment and working conditions in the Covid-19 period have negatively affected healthcare workers, 2- it was observed that during the pandemic, stress and anxiety levels in healthcare workers increased, depression symptoms were visible, and in some cases, outbursts of anger were inevitable, 3- with the Covid-19 pandemic, we observed that social stigmatization/exclusion behaviors, which correspond to the concept of rejection due to their negative characteristics, reoccur around the infected people and their families, healthcare workers, and their families. Finally, a large part of healthcare workers have experienced burnout during this period.