Physical and psychological status of emergency assistance personnel at major public health events: a qualitative descriptive study

Abstract

Abstract Background Many personnel respond to natural disasters like earthquakes and tsunamis and frequent public health events like Ebola and COVID-19. However, research on emergency assistance personnel remains limited. This study aims to describe the perceived well-being among responders deployed in isolated or emergency international missions while providing practical references to intervene in developing similar missions. Methods For this qualitative phenomenological study, purposive sampling was used following the principle of maximum differentiation to select personnel deployed on an emergency mission for over a year. Data collection continued until data saturation. Phenomenologically semi-structured interviews helped explore the physical and psychological status of the participants with Colaizzi’s method. Results Eleven personnel were interviewed after the mission, with four major themes being identified: ‘perceived somatic change,’ ‘perceived emotional change,’ ‘behavioral change,’ and ‘coping with perceived change.’ Conclusions The mental health status of the emergency assistance personnel was affected by multiple factors from external and internal environments. The current study explored the physical and psychological feelings and emotions of emergency assistance personnel during an emergency mission. The study provided a practical reference for health management under similar missions. Registrations Not registered.

Keywords

• Public health
• Rescue work
• Psychological interview
• Qualitative research