Title:
Somatic and Psychological Consequences of Covid-19 on Healthcare Professionals and Its Effects on Healthcare Delivery in a Teaching Hospital in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Authors:
Carl Hermann Dino Steinmetz, Faiz Ul Haq, Saeed Ur Rehman, Muhammad Romman and Mahendra Pal, Netherlands

Abstract:

This is a descriptive framework study (Peng et al. 2008) of COVID-19 pandemic viral disease among healthcare professionals at the Timergara Teaching Hospital Dir Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, its physical and psychological consequences for them and its effects on the local healthcare delivery. Only healthcare professionals with a positive RT-PCR (reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction) test were included in this study. The theory of opportunity was used because the virus is supposed to seek opportunities to multiply. Some support has come to this theory. The most startling outcome is that COVID-19 care has supplanted 'normal' patient care. In addition, we believe that at the Timergara Teaching Hospital Dir Khyber Pakhtunkhwa all protective measures (including PPE) against the transmission of COVID-19 particles to healthcare professionals should be critically examined for their preventive effect. The third conclusion is that more attention should be paid to the psychological impact of COVID-19 on healthcare professionals (via victim assistance and EMDR therapy) and preventive and proactive care (e.g. through stress inoculation).

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.51505/ijmshr.2021.5113