The mental health's impact of community health agents on the tackling of the COVID-19 pandemic
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25118/2763-9037.2024.v14.1290Keywords:
COVID-19, Community Health Agents, Mental HealthAbstract
Introduction: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the reorganization of Primary Care and the increase in functions of healthcare professionals, especially Community Health Agents (CHAs), caused an overload due to the accumulation of services, increased home visits, and active patient search. Objective: To analyze the psychological impacts of the pandemic on the restructuring of work routines and the risk of illness among CHAs at a Health Center (HC). Method: Social health research with a quantitative and qualitative approach. The sample consisted of 13 CHAs who worked at an HC from March 2020 to July 2021. Data collection, approved by the Research Ethics Committee (opinion no. 6.198.654), was carried out through individual questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Results: 76.9% of the participants reported changes in work routines with increased dedication and new tasks. 69.2% had doubts about their ability to perform the tasks, 53.8% did not receive specific training, and felt abandoned by managers. 84.6% noticed an increase in diseases and the use of medication and alcohol among the team, and 53.8% faced family conflicts. 92.3% experienced stress, anxiety, anguish, and sleep problems, 76.9% felt sadness, and 61.5% reported loneliness, bad mood, illness, and a desire to give up, impacting their mental health and feeling of professional exhaustion. Conclusion: These results highlight the importance of providing support to CHAs to minimize the impact on mental health and to promote positive relationships between work and the health-disease process.
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