Grantee Spotlight: Emotional Exhaustion Among US Health Care Workers Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic, 2019-2021

A new study from Bryan Sexton and Carrie Adair at Duke University, just released from Jama Network Open. 

Key Points

Question  Is the COVID-19 pandemic associated with an increase in health care worker emotional exhaustion?

Findings  In this 3-year survey study with an overall sample of 107 122 responses from US health care workers before (2019) and twice during (2020 and 2021-2022) the COVID-19 pandemic, increases were reported in assessments of emotional exhaustion in oneself and in one’s colleagues overall and for every role; nurses reported increases each year, but physicians reported decreases in 2020 followed by sharp increases in 2021. Exhaustion score clustering in work settings was suggestive of a social contagion effect of exhaustion.

Meaning  These findings indicate that emotional exhaustion among health care workers, which was problematic before the pandemic, has become worse; increases in emotional exhaustion may jeopardize care quality and necessitate additional support for the workforce.

To access the full article, click here.