Mental health of nursing professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study

Prevalence of suicidal ideation and correlated risk factors during the COVID-19 pandemic: A meta-analysis of 113 studies from 31 countries

The purpose of this study was to estimate the prevalence of suicidal ideation and correlated risk factors during the COVID-19 pandemic. Web of Science (WOS) and PubMed were searched according to a pre-set strategy. A total of 132 studies were identified, 104 of which were included in the meta-analysis. The prevalence of suicidal ideation was approximately 14.7% (95%CI: 12.5%, 16.8%, P < 0.01) in the general population, approximately 22.4% (95%CI: 17.1%, 27.8%, P < 0.01）in adolescents, approximately 21.0% (95%CI: 12.8%, 29.2%, P < 0.01) in psychiatric patients, approximately 20.6% (95%CI: 18.7%, 22.5%, P < 0.01）in university students, approximately 18.9% (95%CI: 8.3%, 29.5%, P < 0.01) in younger adults, approximately 10.6% (95%CI: 1.0%, 20.2%, P = 0.031) in COVID-19 patients and approximately 7.4% (95%CI: 4.3%, 10.5%, P < 0.01) in healthcare workers. The prevalence in North America was approximately 16.0% (95%CI: 13.6%-18.4%, P < 0.001), approximately 14.5% in Asia (95%CI: 9.5%-19.4%, P < 0.001), approximately 10.5% in Europe (95%CI: 8.5%-12.4%, P < 0.001), and approximately 20.5% in South America (95%CI: 19.5%-21.5%, P < 0.001). The following were risk factors which might be correlated with suicidal ideation: severe anxiety symptoms, mild to moderate depression, a strong feeling of loneliness/social isolation, poor sleep quality, having COVID-19-related experience, having quarantine or lockdown experience, being female, being single or divorced, having financial problems and having a history of suicidal ideation/attempt. This article reports the prevalence of suicidal ideation and discussing potential risk factors during the pandemic among general population and vulnerable groups. Early detection and follow-up were necessary for the noteworthy population.

Perception of Work-Related Stress and Quality of Life among Nurses during COVID-19 Pandemic-An International, Multicenter Prospective Study

The major focus of the study was the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare workers' mental health. Nurses are the workers who were exposed to pandemic-related stress, being the most affected. The present cross-sectional study was focused on finding out the differences of the level of work-related stress and quality of life in nurses of the three Central European states, specifically the Czech Republic, the Slovak Republic, and Poland. A structured anonymous online questionnaire was created, and then the link was distributed to the target population through executives. Data analysis was performed by using the R programme-version 4.1.3. The study found that nurses from the Czech Republic achieved lower stress levels and had a higher quality of life than nurses from Poland and Slovakia.

Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review

Background

COVID-19 has caused a series of economic, social, personal, and occupational consequences that may affect the mental health of healthcare workers (HCWs), with the consequent risk of developing suicidal ideation and behaviors.

Objectives

The aim of this study was to identify the main risk factors that may predispose HCWs to suicidal ideation and suicide attempts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

A systematic review of studies published between January 2020 and August 2022 was conducted following the PRISMA guidelines in the following electronic databases: Pubmed, Scopus, Web of Science, CINAHL, and PsycINFO. Methodological quality was assessed using the critical appraisal tools for non-randomized studies of the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI). The followed protocol is listed in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) with code CRD42022340732.

Results

A total of 34 studies were included in this review. There are a number of underlying factors such as higher rates of depression, anxiety, pre-pandemic lifetime mental disorders or previous lifetime suicide attempt, living alone, having problems with alcohol and/or other drugs, etc. that favor the emergence of suicidal tendencies and ideation in times of COVID-19. Similarly, the pandemic may have precipitated a series of factors such as economic concerns, assessing one's working conditions as poor, having family members or friends infected, changes in services or functions, and feeling discriminated against or stigmatized by society. Other factors such as age, sex, or type of healthcare worker show differences between studies.

Conclusion

Organizations should ensure the adoption of strategies and programmes for early detection of suicides as well as increased attention to the mental health of professions with a high workload.

Systematic review registration

PROSPERO, identifier CRD42022340732.

Job Crafting and Nurses' Presenteeism: The Effects of Job Embeddedness and Job Irreplaceability

Background

Presenteeism is defined as the behavior of people who insist on attending work despite complaints of ill health that should prompt rest and absence from work. Due to the heavy workloads and irreplaceable duties of the nursing service, nurses are a typical representative group suffering from presenteeism. Although more scholars have recently begun focusing on presenteeism, an abundant number of studies have tended to focus on presenteeism's external objective factors. There is, thus, a lack of studies based on variables related to the intra-individual initiative. This study aimed to address this gap by exploring the relationship between job crafting and nurses' presenteeism from the perspective of the individual internal initiative. Furthermore, this study also aimed to examine job embeddedness' mediating effect and job irreplaceability's moderating effect on presenteeism.

Methods

A total of 900 nurses from a 3A-graded hospital in Henan Province were invited to participate in the online study in October, November, and December 2021, respectively. Participants were asked to complete Self-report scales on job crafting, job embeddedness, job irreplaceability, and presenteeism at three time points above. Job crafting was measured at Time 1, job embeddedness and job irreplaceability were measured at Time 2, and presenteeism was measured at Time 3.

Results

Presenteeism was significantly associated with differences in participants' age and tenure. Job crafting was significantly positively associated with job embeddedness, and job embeddedness was significantly negatively correlated with presenteeism. Job embeddedness mediated the relationship between job crafting and presenteeism. Job irreplaceability moderated the relationship between job embeddedness and presenteeism.

Conclusions

This study explored job crafting's influence mechanism on nurses' presenteeism, which is beneficial to providing effective suggestions for managing and preventing the incidence of nurses' presenteeism. Future research should consider expanding the sampling area and enriching the occupational fields of included participants to conduct a more in-depth discussion on the relationship between job crafting and nurses' presenteeism.