No one knows how doctors will treat the anxiety of being at the forefront of the COVID-19 pandemic for months.

But mental health experts say tolls are unavoidable. Fallout to the patient is possible.

The COVID-19 pandemic is an ongoing stress factor for doctors and nurses in hospitals here in southwestern Florida and throughout the country. Experts say the end isn’t visible, with the warning that the community will be resuming and the second wave of the pandemic will be late summer or fall.

Many organizations at national, state and local levels are strengthening resources for physicians and other frontline health professionals to address stress and burnout problems that were problematic even before the COVID-19 outbreak. doing.

More than 600 psychiatrists nationwide have volunteers staffed to the doctor’s support line to provide counseling services during the pandemic. The number is 888-409-0141.

According to the group’s website, over 3,000 minutes were recorded in the three weeks since the start of March 30. physiciansupportline.com..

In southwest Florida, confidential psychological services previously available only to medical members of the Korea County Medical Society are now available to Dr. Korea and her spouse. Sessions are conducted through telemedicine video calls.

According to April Donahue, director of the Collier Medical Association, about 900 doctors are actively practicing in Collier and 1,400 are actively practicing in Lee. We are concerned about how doctors in this area are doing their best.

“There is a lot of fatigue now, especially among hospital-based health workers, and even PTSD can have a lasting impact,” said Dr. David Wilkinson, chairman of the Collier College of Medicine. Stated. “Doctors don’t expect this to go away in the coming months, and they are going to continue preparing for how this will change their practice and life.”

Healthcare Network, a provider of health and behavioral health services at Collier, provides a series of free virtual conversations to health professionals across the state to discuss the impact of COVID-19. The series begins May 19th.

Facebook pages for doctors in Collier and Lee counties are gaining popularity for networking during a pandemic.

Although the early doctors diagnosed with COVID-19 in Florida were less concerned about their safety, they needed help and encouragement to seek help, said Amaryllis Sanchez Walever, a wellness coach for Central Florida doctors. Said the doctor.

“Working every day for your own safety can cloud your intelligence, exhaust internal emotional resources, and affect decision making and patient care,” she said. “It also puts the patient at risk, commits us to the hypocractic oath and brings significant moral distress.”

The eight causes of doctor anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic have been confirmed in an article published last month in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

More: National Guard Returning to Collier County Offers Free Walk-Up COVID-19 Test

A senior wellness officer at the Stanford University School of Medicine in Stanford, California and the Ikern School of Medicine in Mount Sinai, New York, listened to nearly 70 doctors and nurses across the country, causing eight stress-causing’auscultation tours’. Was carried out.

“The surge in critically ill patients can last for weeks or months, so it’s essential that health professionals perform at their best for the long term,” said Stanford’s lead author, Dr. Taietschanafeld. It was ..

A detailed plan of how hospitals and healthcare organizations should act in times of crisis to address the needs of health care workers is provided by the American Medical Association.

Eight anxieties were adequate and likely to be deployed to use proper personal protective equipment, access to prompt testing, access to illness updates, and work elsewhere during the pandemic. Concerns about proper medical support are included.

Other stressors are the risk of doctor exposure and the uncertainty of how a family member will be kept safe by a hospital or medical institution if a doctor becomes infected.

“At the same time, they deal with the social changes and emotional stressors that all face. Healthcare professionals are at increased risk of exposure, extreme workloads, moral dilemmas, and familiarity. Faced with a rapidly evolving practice environment that is vastly different from what it is, Shannafeld said.

Frontline stress

Central Florida doctor coach Sanchez Walever said that doctors who had to see an in-patient dying alone would hurt the patient because visits were banned.

“This has been one of the toughest aspects of a pandemic for us since we realized that ties and empathy are essential for healing, including healing from this virus,” she said.

She has been in medicine for 25 years and has never seen so much expression of sadness, deep empathy, or sorrow among her colleagues.

Dr. Larry Antonucci, President and CEO of Rehealth, currently has 80 patients with COVID-19 in the hospital and has discharged 358 patients who have recovered from the disease. The toll that it took.

“But most doctors see medicine as their mission, and what we’ve found is that these people come together and depend on each other, uniting them. “He said. Our staff embodies our mission by truly coordinating and managing each other to ensure that patients receive the care they need during this global health crisis.

“Yes, they’re worried about getting a coronavirus or taking it home, but they want to work more than anywhere else.”

More: Florida Hospitals Must Follow Testing Rules Before Dismissing COVID-19 Patients In A Nursing Home

Because the mental health of employees and medical staff is important, Rehealth has put together resources to help them.

“These resources include everything from parenting and mental services to mental health support and financial resources,” he said. “Our doctors and employees are at the forefront of protecting our communities from the coronavirus. We believe it is our duty to provide as many resources as possible so that they can rest assured. believe.”

Dr. Rebekah Bernard, Estero’s primary care physician and physician wellness coach working at the Florida Medical Association, said some doctors who had never had a fundamental mental health problem witnessed at COVID-19. He said he might have a hard time dealing with the trauma that is happening.

Bernard launched a doctor-only Facebook page a few months ago and has been rapidly expanding its membership in southwest Florida since the pandemic. Membership was served by 229 doctors last week.

According to the Collier Medical Association, a private Facebook page dedicated to doctors is maintained by both county medical associations, Donahue said.

In 2017, Collier and Lee’s Medical Society developed a doctor’s wellness program in a confidential psychological session to combat burnout.

With COVID-19, the Collier Society extends the availability of confidential psychologist sessions to Collier’s doctors and spouses.

According to Donahue, in March there were 10 virtual psychology sessions signed to psychology for doctors, and seven doctors last month. There is no cost to the doctor. The medical association will bear the costs.

NCH ​​Healthcare System donated $ 10,000 to the program. This was decided shortly after Paul Hiltz became president and CEO of the hospital system. According to Donahue, this year and last year there was a $ 10,000 donation from the Southwest Florida Medical Association.

It is difficult for doctors to contact them for counseling and other mental health assistance, Bernard said.

“I think doctors are cautiously optimistic about what’s going on,” she said.

She said the great support from the community to NCH and medical staff through donations of masks, meals, gift cards, and flowers during the pandemic has a long way to go to morale.

“Doctors are used to being a whipping boy for a long time,” she said. “What we have seen in the flood of support from the community is that it is a huge benefit for doctors and nurses to get a response, and what they do is very valuable. There is. “

According to the Florida Medical Association, due to the costly toll doctors in the hospital, the care of COVID-19 patients, and the suspension of doctors’ work due to the recently discontinued pandemic and ban of elective surgery. There is a loss.

In a recent study, the association said nearly 100% of doctors said their practice was experiencing declining revenue or expected financial losses, with 42% needing to lay off staff. I am reporting.

The association did not have a salary range for state doctors. According to Medscape’s latest figures released this week, the average annual salary for primary care physicians was $ 243,000 and the average annual salary for specialists was $ 346,000, according to Medscape. Salaries vary significantly by specialty and among doctors employed in hospitals and private clinics.

Strengthening the healthcare network

Board-accredited clinical psychologist Emily Putashek, president and CEO of the Healthcare Network, said that at the forefront of the pandemic, there are significant concerns about the long-term health of health professionals. ..

“This is an ongoing, long-term crisis we haven’t studied yet,” she said, referring to clinical studies.

Photo: New England Patriot J.C. Jackson Donates Food and PPE to NCH Hospital Staff

Moreover, methods of relieving stress from previous jobs, such as travel and social events, are no longer an option because they increase social distance and increase stress.

“You can’t usually count on help,” Puteshek said. “There is nothing like this.”

She said the healthcare network offers a series of “virtual conversations” tailored for healthcare workers across the state to learn how to build resilience and prepare for the future.

There will be four sessions covering the first reaction to the pandemic, the person behind the personal protective mask, coping strategies, and what follows after the pandemic. Sessions will be held in May and June.

Virtual conversations are complementary to what the medical association offers in psychological sessions, Puttsek said.

Virtual conversations are a bit more basic peer support, and some healthcare professionals may find that they need professional help, such as the ones provided by medical societies.

Registration requires registration per session healthswfl.org Or call 239-658-3000.

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