scholarly journals A comparative study on acute stress levels of healthcare professionals and public in COVID-19 pandemic

2022 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 7
Author(s):  
Alisan Yasar ◽  
Mehmet Aydin ◽  
Aybeniz Kahve ◽  
Yunus Hacimusalar
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Study ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Acute Stress ◽  
Stress Levels

scholarly journals The major worldwide stress of healthcare professionals during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic – the international COVISTRESS survey

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (10) ◽  
pp. e0257840
Author(s):  
Sébastien Couarraze ◽  
Louis Delamarre ◽  
Fouad Marhar ◽  
Binh Quach ◽  
Jiao Jiao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
High Stress ◽  
Medical Doctors ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Paramedical Staff ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Stress Levels ◽  
Very High

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has initiated an upheaval in society and has been the cause of considerable stress during this period. Healthcare professionals have been on the front line during this health crisis, particularly paramedical staff. The aim of this study was to assess the high level of stress of healthcare workers during the first wave of the pandemic. Materials and methods The COVISTRESS international study is a questionnaire disseminated online collecting demographic and stress-related data over the globe, during the pandemic. Stress levels were evaluated using non-calibrated visual analog scale, from 0 (no stress) to 100 (maximal stress). Results Among the 13,537 individuals from 44 countries who completed the survey from January to June 2020, we included 10,051 workers (including 1379 healthcare workers, 631 medical doctors and 748 paramedical staff). The stress levels during the first wave of the pandemic were 57.8 ± 33 in the whole cohort, 65.3 ± 29.1 in medical doctors, and 73.6 ± 27.7 in paramedical staff. Healthcare professionals and especially paramedical staff had the highest levels of stress (p < 0.001 vs non-healthcare workers). Across all occupational categories, women had systematically significantly higher levels of work-related stress than men (p < 0.001). There was a negative correlation between age and stress level (r = -0.098, p < 0.001). Healthcare professionals demonstrated an increased risk of very-high stress levels (>80) compared to other workers (OR = 2.13, 95% CI 1.87–2.41). Paramedical staff risk for very-high levels of stress was higher than doctors’ (1.88, 1.50–2.34). The risk of high levels of stress also increased in women (1.83, 1.61–2.09; p < 0.001 vs. men) and in people aged <50 (1.45, 1.26–1.66; p < 0.001 vs. aged >50). Conclusions The first wave of the pandemic was a major stressful event for healthcare workers, especially paramedical staff. Among individuals, women were the most at risk while age was a protective factor.

scholarly journals Long-term stress levels are synchronized in dogs and their owners

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann-Sofie Sundman ◽  
Enya Van Poucke ◽  
Ann-Charlotte Svensson Holm ◽  
Åshild Faresjö ◽  
Elvar Theodorsson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Personality Traits ◽  
Acute Stress ◽  
Seasonal Effect ◽  
Activity Levels ◽  
Stress Levels ◽  
Interspecific Synchronization ◽  
General Physical ◽  
First Time ◽  
Previous Summer

Abstract This study reveals, for the first time, an interspecific synchronization in long-term stress levels. Previously, acute stress, has been shown to be highly contagious both among humans and between individuals of other species. Here, long-term stress synchronization in dogs and their owners was investigated. We studied 58 dog-human dyads and analyzed their hair cortisol concentrations (HCC) at two separate occasions, reflecting levels during previous summer and winter months. The personality traits of both dogs and their owners were determined through owner-completed Dog Personality Questionnaire (DPQ) and human Big Five Inventory (BFI) surveys. In addition, the dogs’ activity levels were continuously monitored with a remote cloud-based activity collar for one week. Shetland sheepdogs (N = 33) and border collies (N = 25), balanced for sex, participated, and both pet dogs and actively competing dogs (agility and obedience) were included to represent different lifestyles. The results showed significant interspecies correlations in long-term stress where human HCC from both summer and winter samplings correlated strongly with dog HCC (summer: N = 57, χ2 = 23.697, P < 0.001, β = 0.235; winter: N = 55, χ2 = 13.796, P < 0.001, β = 0.027). Interestingly, the dogs’ activity levels did not affect HCC, nor did the amount of training sessions per week, showing that the HCC levels were not related to general physical activity. Additionally, there was a seasonal effect in HCC. However, although dogs’ personalities had little effects on their HCC, the human personality traits neuroticism, conscientiousness, and openness significantly affected dog HCC. Hence, we suggest that dogs, to a great extent, mirror the stress level of their owners.

scholarly journals Measuring Stress in Health Professionals over the Phone using Automatic Speech Analysis during COVID-19 Pandemic : Observational Study (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra König ◽  
Kevin Riviere ◽  
Nicklas Linz ◽  
Julia Elbaum ◽  
Roxane Fabre ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Professionals ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Intervention Strategies ◽  
Speech Analysis ◽  
Phone Call ◽  
Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficients ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Psychosocial Risks ◽  
Speech Characteristics ◽  
Stress Levels

BACKGROUND During the current COVID-19 pandemic, health professionals are directly confronted with the suffering of patients and their families. By making them main actors in the management of this health crisis, they are exposed to various psychosocial risks (stress, trauma, fatigue, etc.). Paradoxically, stress-related symptoms are often underreported in this vulnerable population but potentially detectable through passive monitoring of changes in speech behavior. OBJECTIVE The study aims to investigate the use of a rapid and remote measure of stress levels in health professionals working during this COVID 19 outbreak through the analysis of their speech behavior during a short phone call conversation, and in particular a positive/negative and neutral story telling task. METHODS For this, speech samples of 89 healthcare professionals were collected over the phone and various voice features extracted and compared with classical stress measures via standard questionnaires. Regression analysis was additionally performed. RESULTS Certain speech characteristics correlated with stress levels in both genders; mainly spectral (formant) features as the Mel-frequency cepstral coefficients (MFCC) and prosodic characteristics such as the fundamental frequency (F0) seemed sensitive to stress. Overall, for both male and female participants, using vocal features from the positive tasks for regression yielded most accurate prediction results of stress scores (MAE = 5.31). CONCLUSIONS Automatic speech analysis could help with early detection of subtle signs of stress in vulnerable populations over the phone. Combining the use of this technology with timely intervention strategies it could contribute to the prevention of burn outs as well as the development of co-morbidities such as depression or anxiety.

How stressful is the Newborn Life Support airway test? An observational study

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 108-111
Author(s):  
Nicola Holme ◽  
Catherine Harrison ◽  
Paul Newland ◽  
Ben N J Shaw
Keyword(s):  
Observational Study ◽  
Trait Anxiety ◽  
Salivary Cortisol ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Life Support ◽  
Significant Rise ◽  
State Trait Anxiety Inventory ◽  
Stress Levels ◽  
Anxiety Levels ◽  
The Uk

ObjectivesTo determine whether there is a significant stress response to the Newborn Life Support airway test (NLSAT) among healthcare professionals in the UK.DesignQuantitative study measuring both stress and anxiety of candidates on Newborn Life Support (NLS) courses measuring salivary cortisol levels along with validated anxiety questionnaires (State Trait Anxiety Inventory).SettingUK NLS course centres.Participants80 healthcare professionals (nurses, doctors and midwives) on NLS courses.InterventionsStress levels measured (cortisol swabs and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI)) at baseline, immediately before and 20 min after starting the NLSAT.ResultsCortisol measurements failed to detect any significant rise in stress levels as a result of the NLSAT. Significant anxiety was induced by the NLSAT based on STAI scores. STAI scores rose significantly in all professionals from baseline to post-NLSAT, with the greatest change detected for midwives (+11.82 (SD 7.64, p<0.001)) compared with nurses (+8.86 (SD 12.1, p<0.001)) and doctors (+7.96 (SD 2.9.69, p<0.001)). Experience had no impact on stress levels.ConclusionsAnxiety levels induced by the NLSAT are significant and should be considered when instructing and developing the NLS course.

Beliefs about the mentally ill: A comparative study between healthcare professionals in Brazil and in Switzerland

2008 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 503-509 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadia Des Courtis ◽  
Christoph Lauber ◽  
Celio Trujillo Costa ◽  
Katja Cattapan-Ludewig
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Study ◽  
Mentally Ill ◽  
Healthcare Professionals

scholarly journals Making Wearable Technology Available for Mental Healthcare through an Online Platform with Stress Detection Algorithms: The Carewear Project

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Glen Debard ◽  
Nele De Witte ◽  
Romy Sels ◽  
Marc Mertens ◽  
Tom Van Daele ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Healthcare Professional ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Acute Stress ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Mental Healthcare ◽  
Wearable Technology ◽  
Negative Feeling ◽  
Accelerometer Data ◽  
Online Platform

Over the past years, mobile health (mHealth) applications and specifically wearables have become able and available to collect data of increasing quality of relevance for mental health. Despite the large potential of wearable technology, mental healthcare professionals are currently lacking tools and knowledge to properly implement and make use of this technology in practice. The Carewear project is aimed at developing and evaluating an online platform, allowing healthcare professionals to use data from wearables in their clinical practice. Carewear implements data collection through self-tracking, which is aimed at helping people in their behavioral change process, as a component of a broader intervention or therapy guided by a mental healthcare professional. The Empatica E4 wearables are used to collect accelerometer data, electrodermal activity (EDA), and blood volume pulse (BVP) in real life. This data is uploaded to the Carewear platform where algorithms calculate moments of acute stress, average resting heart rate (HR), HR variability (HRV), step count, active periods, and total active minutes. The detected moments of acute stress can be annotated to indicate whether they are associated with a negative feeling of stress. Also, the mood of the day can be elaborated on. The online platform presents this information in a structured way to both the client and their mental healthcare professional. The goal of the current study was a first assessment of the accuracy of the algorithms in real life through comparisons with comprehensive annotated data in a small sample of five healthy participants without known stress-related complaints. Additionally, we assessed the usability of the application through user reports concerning their experiences with the wearable and online platform. While the current study shows that a substantial amount of false positives are detected in a healthy sample and that usability could be improved, the concept of a user-friendly platform to combine physiological data with self-report to inform on stress and mental health is viewed positively in our pilots.

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