• Robert G Maunder, William J Lancee, Kenneth E Balderson, Jocelyn P Bennett, Bjug Borgundvaag, Susan Evans, Christopher M B Fernandes, David S Goldbloom, Mona Gupta, Jonathan J Hunter, Linda McGillis Hall, Lynn M Nagle, Clare Pain, Sonia S Peczeniuk, Glenna Raymond, Nancy Read, Sean B Rourke, Rosalie J Steinberg, Thomas E Stewart, Susan VanDeVelde-Coke, Georgina G Veldhorst, and Donald A Wasylenki.
• Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. rmaunder@mtsinai.on.ca
• Emerging Infect. Dis. 2006 Dec 1; 12 (12): 1924-32.

AbstractHealthcare workers (HCWs) found the 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) to be stressful, but the long-term impact is not known. From 13 to 26 months after the SARS outbreak, 769 HCWs at 9 Toronto hospitals that treated SARS patients and 4 Hamilton hospitals that did not treat SARS patients completed a survey of several adverse outcomes. Toronto HCWs reported significantly higher levels of burnout (p = 0.019), psychological distress (p<0.001), and posttraumatic stress (p<0.001). Toronto workers were more likely to have reduced patient contact and work hours and to report behavioral consequences of stress. Variance in adverse outcomes was explained by a protective effect of the perceived adequacy of training and support and by a provocative effect of maladaptive coping style and other individual factors. The results reinforce the value of effective staff support and training in preparation for future outbreaks.

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