The risk of vicarious trauma among front-line and non-front-line midwives and nurses

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the impact of caring with pandemic patients on health care workers who worked in the front line versus their collegues from the same institution who remained in their usual hospital  wards. Material and methods: This prospective descriptive study was conducted during the Covid-19 pandemic from June 25, 2020 to July 03, 2020. A total of 107 licensed registered nurses enrolled the study. 58 of them were front-line nurses and 49 of them were nurses remained in their usual wards. All participants evaluated by the vicarious traumatization (VT) evaluation scale. Results: The VT scores of the front-line nurses were significantly higher than those of the non-front-line nurses (p<0.001). When the domains in the VT score were evaluated, it was seen that the psychological responses and physiological responses of the front-line nurses were significantly higher compared to the non-front-line nurses (p<0.001). Conclusion: Medical staff working on the FL for Covid-19 patients had higher scores of vicarious traumatization compared to medical staff serving in their usual wards. The challenges of prolonged care of Covid-19 patients will put pressure on these professionals, and the leadership must emphasize the importance of medical staff mental health for the better control of the pandemic.