Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on MHCW

HREC Reference number: HREC/2020/QMS/68529 Project Title: A longitudinal assessment of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the psychological health and prevalence of professional burnout in health care workers in a large metropolitan mental health service

The COVID-19 pandemic is predicted to have a significant negative impact on the mental health of the Australian population, leading to an increase in demand for mental health services. The combination of this increased workload and the nature of the work that they undertake may place mental health workers at higher risk of developing psychological distress in the form of increased anxiety or depression or potentially may increase the risk of professional burnout.

This study aims to longitudinally assess the prevalence of anxiety and depressive symptoms as well as professional burnout experienced by mental health care workers across various time points during the pandemic. In undertaking this assessment, we aim to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on health and wellbeing, and to investigate potential risk factors for psychological distress among health care workers. Assessment of the presence and severity of these symptoms may also create the potential for early intervention measures to reduce distress, build resilience and provide support to a stressed workforce.