Publication:

Evaluation of stress levels and resilience in healthcare providers working in emergency settings

Background Emergency healthcare workers face high stress, leading to burnout, anxiety, and depression that impact performance and retention. Long hours and irregular schedules worsen these issues. Interventions such as resilience-focused environments, cognitive behavioural therapy, group sessions, recreational activities, and access to psychological support help reduce these effects and improve wellbeing.

Methods This study adopted a questionnaire based method to assess stress levels, secondary stress characteristics, and the outcomes of long-term stress among healthcare providers. The research design is both exploratory and descriptive: exploratory research defines the problem, while descriptive research examines frequency and the relationship between variables. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire through direct personal interviews due to time and other constraints.

Results The study used the professional quality of life (ProQOL) scale to assess secondary traumatic stress among healthcare providers. Emergency physicians showed greater resilience and lower burnout and stress than other departments, while internal medicine staff had the highest resilience (7.26) and low burnout. These findings underscore the need to assess resilience across roles to guide targeted training and preparedness for future large scale health emergencies.

Conclusions Healthcare professionals in emergency settings experience substantial stress, resulting in burnout, anxiety, and depression, which adversely affect performance and retention. Extended and irregular working hours further exacerbate physical and psychological strain. Interventions such as resilience-building initiatives, cognitive behavioural therapy, group support, engagement in leisure activities, and access to psychological services are effective in enhancing their overall wellbeing.