Pandemic Increases Burnout Among New Hampshire’s Healthcare Workers

According to this article from NH Business Review, there has been significant concern about the psychological impact of the COVID-19 crisis on frontline health care workers and first responders. Hospitals and organizations in New Hampshire say there has been an increase in mental strain over the past several months. They point out the pandemic has put a renewed spotlight on the longstanding issue of burnout — as well as ways to address it.

The New Hampshire Professionals Health Program provides services to healthcare workers who are struggling with issues that could hinder their work, such as substance use disorder, mental health concerns, and behavioral health issues. Referrals of doctors, nursing assistants, and nurses to the program have increased up to 35% since the beginning of the pandemic, according to Sally Garhart, medical director for the nonprofit.

“For individuals that we’ve been monitoring, we’ve had a significant uptick in stress reports and mental health, mostly because of isolation, the inability to have live meetings,” Garhart said. “If someone has really counted on their AA group that they went to a couple times a week and now it suddenly became virtual — virtual just doesn’t have the same feel that a small group does.”