A major impact of the covid-19 pandemic has been on healthcare workers whose physical health has been threatened by the risk of getting infected with the virus, and whose mental health has been threatened by anxiety about their own health, the risk of them spreading infection to their loved ones and to patients, worry about the lack of PPE and limited availability of testing, feeling unprepared when asked to work in unfamiliar areas of patient care, and uncertainty about whether employers would support them if they got sick. These stressors are imposed on a healthcare workforce that already suffers from high rates of burnout. Dzau et al provide several recommendations about how to address the psychological and emotional needs of healthcare workers during this pandemic.
