An Exploratory Study on Mental Health and Burnout in Social Care Workers of an Emergency Shelter for Homeless Population during the COVID-19 Pandemic

  1. Pedro Altungy
  2. Raúl Torres
  3. Sara Liébana
  4. Jesús Saiz
  5. osé M. Sánchez-Marqueses
Journal:
Clínica y salud: Investigación Empírica en Psicología

ISSN: 1130-5274

Year of publication: 2022

Volume: 33

Issue: 1

Pages: 29-34

Type: Article

DOI: 10.5093/CLYSA2022A3 DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR lock_openOpen access editor

More publications in: Clínica y salud: Investigación Empírica en Psicología

Abstract

The aim of the current research is trying to fill in the gap that exists in regard with the lack of knowledge about the psychological status of social care professionals who worked in an emergency social service for homeless people during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study measured work sastisfaction, burnout, fatigue, depression, and anxiety symptoms in a sample of 44 Spanish social care professionals who worked in the IFEMA Pabellón 14 Social Emergency Centre for Homeless People in Madrid, Spain. The study was carried out in four measurement moments (between April and May), and results showed that, overall, workers displayed good levels of psychological adaptation to their workplace during the two months and a half that the emergency centre was running, in spite of all the uncertainty and risks existing throughout that time.

Bibliographic References

  • Bakker, A. B. (2011). An evidence-based model of work engagement. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 20(4), 265-269. https:// doi.org/10.1177/0963721411414534
  • Beck, A. T., Steer, R. A., Ball, R., Ciervo, C. A., & Kabat, M. (1997). Use of the Beck Anxiety and Depression Inventories for primary care with medical outpatients. Assessment, 4(3), 211-219. https://doi. org/10.1177/107319119700400301
  • Beck, A. T., Steer, R. A., & Brown, G. (1996). Beck depression inventory-II. Psychological Assessment.
  • Benfer, E. A., & L. F. Wiley (2020, March 19). Health justice strategies to combat COVID-19: Protecting vulnerable communities during a pandemic. Health Affairs Blog. https://www.healthaffairs.org/ do/10.1377/hblog20200319.757883/full/
  • Berdullas-Saunders, S., Gesteira-Santos, C., Morán-Rodríguez, N., FernándezHermida, J. R., Santolaya, F., Sanz-Fernández, J., & García-Vera, M. P. (2020). El teléfono de asistencia psicológica por la COVID-19 del Ministerio de Sanidad y del Consejo General de la Psicología de España: características y demanda. Revista Española de Salud Pública, 0-0.
  • Bredicean, C., Tamasan, S. C., Lungeanu, D., Giurgi-Oncu, C., Stoica, I. P., Panfil, A. L., Vasilian, C., Secosan, I., Ursoniu, S., & Patrascu, R. (2021). Burnout toll on empathy would mediate the missing professional support in the COVID-19 outbreak. Risk Management and Healthcare Policy, 14, 2231-2244. https://doi.org/10.2147/RMHP.S300578
  • Calvo, F., Fitzpatrick, S., Fàbregas, C., Carbonell, X., Cohort Group, & TurróGarriga, O. (2020). Individuals experiencing chronic homelessness: A 10- year followup of a cohort in Spain. Health & Social Care in the Community, 28(5), 1787-1794. https://doi.org/10.1111/hsc.13005
  • De Kock, J. H., Latham, H. A., Leslie, S. J., Grindle, M., Munoz, S. A., Ellis, L., Polson, R., & O’Malley, C. M. (2021). A rapid review of the impact of COVID-19 on the mental health of healthcare workers: Implications for supporting psychological well-being. BMC Public Health, 21(1), 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-10070-3
  • Dubey S., Biswas, P., Ghosh, R., Chatterjee, S., Dubey, M. J., Chatterjee, S., Lahiri, D., & Lavie, C.J. (2020). Psychosocial impact of COVID-19. Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews, 14(5), 779-788. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsx.2020.05.035
  • Galiana, L., Arena, F., Oliver, A., Sansó, N., & Benito, E. (2017). Compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, and burnout in Spain and Brazil: ProQOL validation and cross-cultural diagnosis. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 53(3), 598-604. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. jpainsymman.2016.09.014
  • Greenberg, N. (2020). Mental health of health-care workers in the COVID-19 era. Nature Reviews Nephrology, 16(8), 425-426. https://doi. org/10.1038/s41581-020-0314-5
  • Guillén, A. I., Marín, C., Panadero, S., & Vázquez, J. J. (2020). Substance use, stressful life events and mental health: A longitudinal study among homeless women in Madrid (Spain). Addictive Behaviors, 103, e106246. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2019.106246
  • Lai, J., Ma, S., Wang, Y., Cai, Z., Hu, J., Wei, N., Wu, J., Du, H., Chen, T., Li, R., Tan, H., Kang, L., Yao, L., Huang, M., Wang, H., Wang, G., Liu, Z., & Hu, S. (2020). Factors associated with mental health outcomes among health care workers exposed to coronavirus disease 2019. JAMA Network Open, 3(3), e203976. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.3976
  • Lemieux-Cumberlege, A., & Taylor, E. P. (2019). An exploratory study on the factors affecting the mental health and well-being of frontline workers in homeless services. Health & Social Care in the Community, 27(4), e367-e378. https://doi.org/10.1111/hsc.12738
  • Leung, C. S., Ho, M. M., Kiss, A., Gundlapalli, A. V., & Hwang, S. W. (2008). Homelessness and the response to emerging infectious disease outbreaks: Lessons from SARS. Journal of Urban Health, 85(3), 402- 410. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-008-9270-2
  • Luceño-Moreno, L., Talavera-Velasco, B., García-Albuerne, Y., & MartínGarcía, J. (2020). Symptoms of posttraumatic stress, anxiety, depression, levels of resilience and burnout in Spanish health personnel during the COVID-19 Pandemic. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(15), 5514. https://doi. org/10.3390/ijerph17155514
  • Ludick, M., & Figley, C. R. (2017). Toward a mechanism for secondary trauma induction and reduction: Reimagining a theory of secondary traumatic stress. Traumatology, 23(1), 112-123. https://doi.org/10.1037/ trm0000096
  • Maslach, C., Schaufeli, W. B., & Leiter, M. P. (2001). Job burnout. Annual Review of Psychology, 52(1), 397-422. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev. psych.52.1.397
  • Maxwell, J. A. (2010). Using numbers in qualitative research. Qualitative Inquiry, 16(6), 475-482. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077800410364740
  • Nyashanu, M., Pfende, F., & Ekpenyong, M. (2020). Exploring the challenges faced by frontline workers in health and social care amid the COVID-19 pandemic: Experiences of frontline workers in the English Midlands region, UK. Journal of Interprofessional Care, 34(5), 655-661. https:// doi.org/10.1080/13561820.2020.1792425
  • Real Decreto 463/2020, de 14 de marzo, por el que se declara el estado de alarma para la gestión de la situación de crisis sanitaria ocasionada por el COVID-19. (2020). Boletín Oficial del Estado, 67, 25390-25400. https://www.boe.es/diario_boe/txt.php?id=BOE-A-2020-3692
  • Sanz, J., & García-Vera, M. P. (2012). Propiedades psicométricas de una versión breve española del Inventario de Ansiedad de Beck (BAI) (manuscrito no publicado) [Non published manuscript]. Facultad de Psicología. Universidad Complutense de Madrid. Spain.
  • Sanz, J., García-Vera, M. P., Fortún, M., & Espinosa, R. (2005). Desarrollo y propiedades psicométricas de una versión breve española del Inventario para la Depresión de Beck-II (BDI-II). Comunicación presentada en el V Congreso Iberoamericano de Evaluación Psicológica, Buenos Aires (Argentina), 1-2 de julio de 2005.
  • Schaufeli, W. B., & Greenglass, E. R. (2001). Introduction to special issue on burnout and health. Psychology & Health, 16(5), 501-510. https://doi. org/10.1080/08870440108405523
  • Schiff, J. W., & Lane, A. M. (2019). PTSD symptoms, vicarious traumatization, and burnout in front line workers in the homeless sector. Community Mental Health Journal, 55(3), 454-462. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s10597-018-00364-7
  • Stamm, B. H. (2010). The ProQOL manual: The professional quality of life scale compassion satisfaction (2nd ed.). ProQOL.org. B Compassion Fatigue/Secondary Trauma Scales.
  • Tesi, A., Aiello, A., & Giannetti, E. (2019). The work-related well-being of social care workers: Framing job demands, psychological well-being, and work engagement. Journal of Social Work, 19(1), 121-141. https:// doi.org/10.1177/1468017318757397
  • Tsai, J., & Wilson, M. (2020). COVID-19: a potential public health problem for homeless populations. The Lancet Public Health, 5(4), e186-e187. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2468-2667(20)30053-0
  • Vázquez, C., Panadero, S., & Zúñiga, C. (2018). Attributions about homelessness in homeless and domiciled people in Madrid, Spain: “Why are they homeless people?”. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 88(2), 236-247. https://doi.org/10.1037/ort0000246
  • Wirth, T., Mette, J., Prill, J., Harth, V., & Nienhaus, A. (2019). Working conditions, mental health and coping of staff in social work with refugees and homeless individuals: A scoping review. Health & Social Care in the Community, 27(4), e257-e269. https://doi.org/10.1111/ hsc.12730
  • World Health Organisation (WHO, 2019). The ICD-11 classification for mortality and morbidity statistics. https://icd.who.int/browse11/l-m/ en#/http://id.who.int/icd/entity/129180281
  • Wright, T. A., & Cropanzano, R. (2000). Psychological well-being and job satisfaction as predictors of job performance. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 5(1), 84-94. https://doi.org/10.1037/1076- 8998.5.1.84