Psychology Research and Behavior Management (Feb 2023)
Psychosocial Challenges of the Coronavirus Disease-2019 Pandemic Among Frontline Health Care Providers and Their Coping Mechanisms at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, Southwestern Uganda
Abstract
Ivan Mugisha Taremwa,1 Scholastic Ashaba,2,3 Barbara Rita K Naggayi,4 Badru Kayongo,2 Christine Nimwesiga,5 Carlrona Ayebazibwe,1 Manasseh Tumuhimbse,6 John Frank7 1Institute of Allied Health Sciences, Clarke International University, Kampala, Uganda; 2Department of Psychiatry, Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, Mbarara, Uganda; 3Faculty of Medicine, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda; 4Faculty of Interdisciplinary Studies, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda; 5Uganda Nurses and Midwives Council, Ministry of Health, Kampala, Uganda; 6Faculty of Business and Management Sciences, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda; 7Professorial Fellow, Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UKCorrespondence: Ivan Mugisha Taremwa, Institute of Allied Health Sciences, Clarke International University, P.O Box 7782, Kampala, Uganda, Tel +256 774 346 368, Email [email protected]: As a novel global health pandemic, Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-2019) has posed various challenges to frontline healthcare providers (FHCPs). This study explored the social and psychological challenges of COVID-19 to the FHCPs at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, southwestern Uganda.Methods: This was a cross-sectional study with a qualitative approach. Participants were purposively selected, consented, and interviewed. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed. Data were entered into NVivo 10 software and analyzed using a thematic analysis approach.Results: Fourteen FHCPs with diverse roles, including 8 men, were interviewed. Participants’ median age was 38 years (range: 26– 51 years) and eleven of them were married. The subjects’ experiences were explored in relation to perceived social and psychological challenges of working during the COVID-19 pandemic, and coping mechanisms in the COVID-19 pandemic situation. The social challenges identified were burnout, domestic violence, and a financially constrained environment. A further, psychological challenge was anxiety, as well as fear and distress. FHCPs responded with a variety of coping mechanisms, including situational acceptance, religious coping, coping through emotional support of others, and bulk purchase of supply-constrained basic necessities.Conclusion: FHCPs experienced numerous social and psychological challenges, which negatively affected their quality of life amidst a wavering pandemic. As the pandemic rages on, creative and low-cost psychosocial interventions for FHCPs are needed, possibly including more formal peer support, and an improved flow of information about ongoing infectious disease control interventions, so FHCPs feel more knowledgeable about what is ahead.Keywords: psychosocial risks, COVID-19, healthcare providers, coping
