Perspectives of Yukon's frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Abstract

The perspectives of Yukon's nurses and physicians can determine what might mitigate burnout and strengthen the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and/or future health emergencies. The study was conducted in the Yukon Territory, Canada in two phases: completion of the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI), and in-depth oral interviews. This paper will discuss the results of the interviews. A hybrid thematic analysis of 38 interviews revealed five primary themes: personal impacts; work-related effects; client effects/patient care; perceptions of the territorial response to COVID-19; and recommendations for future pandemics. The loss of social connection and burden of childcare contributed to personal burnout. Stressful work environments, increased workload, limited resources and feeling undervalued contributed to job stress and work-related burnout. Healthcare workers ascribed meaning to their roles in improving community health , which may have mitigated client-related burnout. Systemic change is needed to ensure the healthcare workforce can maintain service delivery and respond to future pandemics. The response to COVID-19 was mounted on the backs of frontline healthcare workers who made personal sacrifices and worked to exhaustion to serve their patients. As the healthcare system and its workforce recover from the pandemic, the calls to support healthcare workers must be answered.