The Journal of nervous and mental disease
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J. Nerv. Ment. Dis. · Oct 2021
Moral Injury and Burnout in Health Care Professionals During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
The coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) is predicted to increase burnout in health professionals (HPs), but little is known about moral injury (MI) in this context. We administered the Moral Injury Symptoms Scale for Health Professionals (MISS-HP) and the abbreviated Maslach Burnout Inventory via online survey to a global sample of 1831 HPs in April and October 2020. Mean MISS-HP increased from 27.4 (SD, 11.6) in April to 36.4 (SD, 13.8) in October (p < 0.001), with an accompanying increase in personal accomplishment (April: 4.7; SD, 3.1; October: 9.3; SD, 3.1; p < 0.001) and no change in other burnout subscales. ⋯ Predictors of MISS-HP included younger age and being a nurse. Odds of functional impairment were higher in respondents who were widowed, divorced, never married, or had direct experience caring for patients with COVID-19. COVID-19 has increased MI but not burnout in HPs; younger or unmarried individuals, nurses, and frontline workers may benefit from targeted outreach to reduce downstream effects of MI, depression, and/or posttraumatic stress disorder.
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J. Nerv. Ment. Dis. · Jun 2020
Historical ArticlePsychosocial Reactions to Plagues in the Cultural History of Medicine: A Medical Humanities Approach.
The aim of this work is to elucidate psychosocial reactions to plagues by analyzing three landmark descriptions from different eras: Thucydides' description of the plague of Athens (430 BC) in The History of the Peloponnesian War, Giovanni Boccaccio's description of the plague in Florence (1348) in The Decameron, and Albert Camus' description in The Plague (1947). Using a narrative inquiry, we found psychosocial reactions to be complex and ambivalent and could discern several coping strategies. We propose that this knowledge can help psychiatrists and other healthcare professionals during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
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J. Nerv. Ment. Dis. · Feb 2020
Randomized Controlled TrialPreventing Postpartum Depression With Mindful Self-Compassion Intervention: A Randomized Control Study.
Mindfulness and self-compassion are reported to have a preventive effects on depression and anxiety disorders. In the present study, we aimed to assess the effect of mindful self-compassion intervention on preventing postpartum depression in a group of symptomatic pregnant women. Participants were screened and assigned to the intervention and control groups randomly. ⋯ In addition, the intervention group became more mindful and self-compassionate at 3 months and 1 year postpartum. More importantly, both mothers and infants experienced substantial improvement in well-being. Our findings indicate that mindful self-compassion intervention is effective in preventing postpartum depression and promoting mother and infant well-being.