The Covid-19 pandemic remains one of the worst pandemics since times in history globally. The disease affected the diverse aspects of human life contributing to significant economical constraints, job losses, academic disruption, healthcare service delivery, and movement of people from one geographical location to the other due to lockdown measures imposed by governments to control disease burden (Zaçe et al., 2021). According to a study by Pallavicini et al. (2022), the healthcare systems witnessed an influx in patient population owing to the high disease morbidity rates which subjected the healthcare workers to increased workloads, poor work-life balance, disease stigma, and fear of contracting the disease to their loved ones. The disease also led to the death of many healthcare workers and thus the majority of the healthcare providers felt unease in attending to patients infected with the disease. As a result of the disease-associated ramifications, most of the healthcare workers developed severe mental illnesses with stress, depression, and anxiety being the most prevalent mental disorders among the healthcare workers (Pallavicini et al., 2022). The proposed project seeks to evaluate the effectiveness of using individual and group therapy sessions to improve the mental and psychological well-being of the affected healthcare workers. The purpose of this paper is to explore the diverse variables of the formulated research question and develop a hypothesis to serve as guidance in exploring the research topic.
Research Question
The research question of interest is “Among Healthcare workers with mental disorders following the Covid -19 pandemic how does use of individual/group therapy sessions compared to current improve their psychological and mental well-being within a period of 10-12 weeks?” The research question seeks to explore the relationship between use of the individual/group therapy sessions in improving the mental and psychological well-being of healthcare workers who developed mental illnesses following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The research question is of great relevancy owing to the high burden of mental disorders among healthcare workers which calls for the use of detailed clinical research to come up with effective and applicable evidence-based interventions to improve the population’s health outcomes. The high burden of mental disorders among healthcare workers not only affects their mental and psychological well-being but also contributes to significant impairments in healthcare service delivery as it worsens the already existing shortage of healthcare workers thus making it hard to deliver timely and quality healthcare services to the general patient population (Labrague, 2021). Additionally, mental disorders have debilitating disease symptoms which adversely impact the quality of life for the affected persons and also make it hard for the affected persons to undertake their daily routines. Through the use of the formulated research question, it will be possible to ascertain the effectiveness and reliability of the proposed intervention in improving health outcomes for the affected healthcare workers and restoring normalcy in healthcare service delivery.
As illustrated in the selected studies, the prevalence of mental disorders among healthcare workers significantly rose following the outbreak of the pandemic. This illustrates the need to come up with an evidence-based intervention to improve the mental and psychological well-being of the affected healthcare workers and enable them to undertake their daily routines and actively engage in patient care without any significant impairments. The project will involve undertaking vigorous research to evaluate the reliability and effectiveness of the individual/group therapy sessions in equipping the affected healthcare workers with ideal coping strategies to overcome the prevailing stressors and debilitating disease symptoms thus improving their psychological and mental health outcomes. The move will involve undertaking an experimental study through a selection of project participants from the stated study population and initiating actual clinical research to define the interrelationship between the individual/group therapy sessions in improving the mental and psychological well-being of the affected healthcare workers.
Study Variables
The Independent Variable in the formulated research question is the “Individual/group therapy sessions” while the dependent variable is the “mental and psychological well-being of the healthcare workers.” Exploring the interrelationship between the two variables will ascertain the reliability and effectiveness of using the proposed intervention in the management of patients from the identified study population. Based on the annotated bibliography in the week 1 assignment, it was identified that the use of the individual/group therapy sessions helps to improve the healthcare workers’ knowledge concerning their underlying mental disorders and thus makes it possible for them to use the acquired skills to battle the disturbing disease symptoms.
The use of the approach also provides an opportunity for the affected healthcare workers to share their experiences and thus share new ideas and skills to improve their mental and psychological well-being (Da-Silva & Neto, 2021). The sessions enable the healthcare workers to motivate each other and thus change their perceptions concerning their underlying mental illnesses. This ensures the affected persons stay committed to undertaking their therapy sessions and enhances improved medication adherence thus improving clinical prognosis and positive health outcomes. The stated facts illustrate the interrelationship between the two study variables and thus make it possible to ascertain the reliability of the proposed intervention in achieving the anticipated project outcomes.
Hypothesis
The formulated hypothesis is “use of Individual/Group therapy sessions play a crucial role in improving the mental and psychological well-being of healthcare workers with mental disorders following the Covid-19 pandemic.” The provided evidence wholly supports the use of individual/group therapy sessions in improving healthcare workers’ mental well-being. These therapy sessions equip healthcare workers will competent skills and knowledge to address the disease triggers, overcome disturbing disease symptoms and foster improved commitment to therapy. Additionally, the use of the approach helps change the affected patients’ perceptions of the underlying mental disorders thus serving as motivation in completing their therapy sessions for guaranteed health outcomes (Zaçe et al., 2021). The anticipated project outcomes are reducing the prevalence of mental disorders among the identified study population and achieving positive clinical prognoses among the affected persons.
References
Da-Silva, F. C. T., & Neto, M. L. R. (2021). Psychiatric disorders in health professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review with meta-analysis. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 140, 474-487. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021.03.044
Labrague, L. J. (2021). Psychological resilience, coping behaviors, and social support among health care workers during the COVID‐19 pandemic: A systematic review of quantitative studies. Journal of nursing management, 29(7), 1893-1905. https://doi.org/10.1111/jonm.13336
Pallavicini, F., Orena, E., di Santo, S., Greci, L., Caragnano, C., Ranieri, P & Mantovani, F. (2022). A virtual reality home-based training for the management of stress and anxiety among healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Trials, 23(1), 451. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13063-022-06337-2
Zaçe, D., Hoxhaj, I., Orfino, A., Viteritti, A. M., Janiri, L., & Di Pietro, M. L. (2021). Interventions to address mental health issues in healthcare workers during infectious disease outbreaks: a systematic review. Journal of psychiatric research, 136, 319-333. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021.02.019
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