A STUDY TO ASSESS THE WORK STRESS OF INDIAN NURSES HELPING IN COMBATING COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN RAJASTHAN, INDIA

Abstract

COVID 19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic has compromised the wellbeing of millions of people worldwide. Its high transmission rate causes significant stress and emotional trauma for the frontline healthcare workers (HCWs) who are directly involved in the treatment and care of COVID 19 patients. They are under the constant stress of acquiring infection and transmitting it to their family members. The unclear nature of the disease and lack of definitive treatment further adds on to the stress of HCWs. Past experiences of epidemics and pandemics indicate that the recent COVID 19 outbreak can have a significant psychological impact on the frontline HCWs. But, the stress of each pandemic varies because of the different rates of infectivity, mortality, and availability of treatment. It also varies among different geographical regions due to differences in local climate, prevailing cultural practices and beliefs, and available resources. Also, individuals from different professions, age groups, and gender can experience a different level of stress and use different coping strategies. There are limited studies on the psychosocial impact and coping strategies of COVID 19 among the frontline HCWs of India and no study on HCWs of Rajasthan. The experience and dilemma of frontline HCWs working in personal protective equipment (PPE) suit has not been studied in detail before. So, the present study was planned with the primary objective to know the proportion of different types of psychosocial impact, Sources of stress, and coping strategies among frontline HCWs working in PPE suit in Western Rajasthan during the COVID 19 outbreak.