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Bellehsen MH, Cook HM, Shaam P, Burns D, D’Amico P, Goldberg A, McManus MB, Sapra M, Thomas L, Wacha-Montes A, Zenzerovich G, Watson P, Westphal RJ, Schwartz RM. Adapting the Stress First Aid Model for Frontline Healthcare Workers during COVID-19. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2024; 21:171. [PMID: 38397662 PMCID: PMC10887691 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph21020171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2023] [Revised: 01/22/2024] [Accepted: 01/30/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024]
Abstract
The coronavirus pandemic has generated and continues to create unprecedented demands on our healthcare systems. Healthcare workers (HCWs) face physical and psychological stresses caring for critically ill patients, including experiencing anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress symptoms. Nurses and nursing staff disproportionately experienced COVID-19-related psychological distress due to their vital role in infection mitigation and direct patient care. Therefore, there is a critical need to understand the short- and long-term impact of COVID-19 stress exposures on nursing staff wellbeing and to assess the impact of wellbeing programs aimed at supporting HCWs. To that end, the current study aims to evaluate an evidence-informed peer support stress reduction model, Stress First Aid (SFA), implemented across units within a psychiatric hospital in the New York City area during the pandemic. To examine the effectiveness of SFA, we measured stress, burnout, coping self-efficacy, resilience, and workplace support through self-report surveys completed by nurses and nursing staff over twelve months. The implementation of SFA across units has the potential to provide the workplace-level and individual-level skills necessary to reduce stress and promote resilience, which can be utilized and applied during waves of respiratory illness acuity or any other healthcare-related stressors among this population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mayer H. Bellehsen
- Center for Traumatic Stress, Resilience and Recovery at Northwell Health, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA; (M.H.B.); (P.S.); (D.B.); (A.G.); (A.W.-M.); (G.Z.); (R.M.S.)
- Department of Psychiatry, Zucker Hillside Hospital at Northwell Health, Glen Oaks, NY 11004, USA; (P.D.); (M.S.)
- Behavioral Health Service Line, Northwell Health, New York, NY 10022, USA;
| | - Haley M. Cook
- Center for Traumatic Stress, Resilience and Recovery at Northwell Health, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA; (M.H.B.); (P.S.); (D.B.); (A.G.); (A.W.-M.); (G.Z.); (R.M.S.)
- Department of Occupational Medicine, Epidemiology and Prevention, Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA
| | - Pooja Shaam
- Center for Traumatic Stress, Resilience and Recovery at Northwell Health, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA; (M.H.B.); (P.S.); (D.B.); (A.G.); (A.W.-M.); (G.Z.); (R.M.S.)
- Department of Occupational Medicine, Epidemiology and Prevention, Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA
| | - Daniella Burns
- Center for Traumatic Stress, Resilience and Recovery at Northwell Health, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA; (M.H.B.); (P.S.); (D.B.); (A.G.); (A.W.-M.); (G.Z.); (R.M.S.)
- Behavioral Health Service Line, Northwell Health, New York, NY 10022, USA;
| | - Peter D’Amico
- Department of Psychiatry, Zucker Hillside Hospital at Northwell Health, Glen Oaks, NY 11004, USA; (P.D.); (M.S.)
| | - Arielle Goldberg
- Center for Traumatic Stress, Resilience and Recovery at Northwell Health, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA; (M.H.B.); (P.S.); (D.B.); (A.G.); (A.W.-M.); (G.Z.); (R.M.S.)
- Behavioral Health Service Line, Northwell Health, New York, NY 10022, USA;
| | - Mary Beth McManus
- Behavioral Health Service Line, Northwell Health, New York, NY 10022, USA;
| | - Manish Sapra
- Department of Psychiatry, Zucker Hillside Hospital at Northwell Health, Glen Oaks, NY 11004, USA; (P.D.); (M.S.)
- Behavioral Health Service Line, Northwell Health, New York, NY 10022, USA;
| | - Lily Thomas
- Institute for Nursing, Northwell Health, New Hyde Park, NY 11042, USA;
| | - Annmarie Wacha-Montes
- Center for Traumatic Stress, Resilience and Recovery at Northwell Health, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA; (M.H.B.); (P.S.); (D.B.); (A.G.); (A.W.-M.); (G.Z.); (R.M.S.)
- Behavioral Health Service Line, Northwell Health, New York, NY 10022, USA;
| | - George Zenzerovich
- Center for Traumatic Stress, Resilience and Recovery at Northwell Health, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA; (M.H.B.); (P.S.); (D.B.); (A.G.); (A.W.-M.); (G.Z.); (R.M.S.)
- Behavioral Health Service Line, Northwell Health, New York, NY 10022, USA;
| | - Patricia Watson
- National Center for PTSD, White River Junction, VT 05009, USA;
| | | | - Rebecca M. Schwartz
- Center for Traumatic Stress, Resilience and Recovery at Northwell Health, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA; (M.H.B.); (P.S.); (D.B.); (A.G.); (A.W.-M.); (G.Z.); (R.M.S.)
- Department of Psychiatry, Zucker Hillside Hospital at Northwell Health, Glen Oaks, NY 11004, USA; (P.D.); (M.S.)
- Department of Occupational Medicine, Epidemiology and Prevention, Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA
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