TY - JOUR
T1 - Burn-out in the health workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic
T2 - Opportunities for workplace and leadership approaches to improve well-being
AU - Smallwood, Natasha
AU - Bismark, Marie
AU - Willis, Karen
N1 - Funding Information:
We gratefully acknowledge and thank the Royal Melbourne Hospital Foundation and the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation for financial support for this research.
Publisher Copyright:
© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.
PY - 2023/9
Y1 - 2023/9
N2 - Background: Burn-out is a long-standing problem among healthcare workers (HCWs) and leads to poorer quality and less safe patient care, lower patient satisfaction, absenteeism and reduced workforce retention. Crises such as the pandemic not only generate new challenges but also intensify existing workplace stresses and chronic workforce shortages. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, the global health workforce is burnt-out and under immense pressure, with multiple individual, organisational and healthcare system drivers. Method: In this article, we examine how key organisational and leadership approaches can facilitate mental health support for HCWs and identify strategies to support HCWs that are critical for supporting workforce well-being during the pandemic. Results: We identified 12 key approaches at the organisational and individual levels for healthcare leadership to support workforce well-being during the COVID-19 crisis. These approaches may inform leadership responses to future crises. Conclusion: Governments, healthcare organisations and leaders must invest and deliver long-term measures to value, support and retain the health workforce to preserve high-quality healthcare.
AB - Background: Burn-out is a long-standing problem among healthcare workers (HCWs) and leads to poorer quality and less safe patient care, lower patient satisfaction, absenteeism and reduced workforce retention. Crises such as the pandemic not only generate new challenges but also intensify existing workplace stresses and chronic workforce shortages. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, the global health workforce is burnt-out and under immense pressure, with multiple individual, organisational and healthcare system drivers. Method: In this article, we examine how key organisational and leadership approaches can facilitate mental health support for HCWs and identify strategies to support HCWs that are critical for supporting workforce well-being during the pandemic. Results: We identified 12 key approaches at the organisational and individual levels for healthcare leadership to support workforce well-being during the COVID-19 crisis. These approaches may inform leadership responses to future crises. Conclusion: Governments, healthcare organisations and leaders must invest and deliver long-term measures to value, support and retain the health workforce to preserve high-quality healthcare.
KW - clinical leadership
KW - COVID-19
KW - medical leadership
KW - mental health
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85152677594&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1136/leader-2022-000687
DO - 10.1136/leader-2022-000687
M3 - Article
C2 - 37192091
AN - SCOPUS:85152677594
SN - 2398-631X
VL - 7
SP - 178
EP - 181
JO - BMJ Leader
JF - BMJ Leader
IS - 3
ER -