INTRODUCTION
COVID-19 is considered the cause of a dangerous illness that affects people’s lives and, in many cases, threatens the lives of infected people. In addition, this virus presents an immediate danger to the functioning of communities across the world. Such impacts include the loss of jobs and its effects on families, changes in the mode of education because attendance and interaction have shifted to online and distance learning, and many other changes in people’s lives. Despite these facts, in many countries, disease mitigation, preparedness, and responses were implemented; however, these measures for coping with the events of COVID-19 were insufficient.
Theoretical Framework
We used the stress theories to understand the challenges healthcare professionals in Bangladesh are facing during the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 outbreak has generally caused public stress as people go through a series of physical and mental challenges both inside and outside which affects their own subjective evaluation
High Workload
Participants indicated that the health sector faces a shortage of medical workers. Moreover, many registered doctors do no practice medicine, resulting in higher workload by the active medical work force in public as well as in private facilities. In the private facilities, doctors were usually provided with a 1-day break each week. Doctors were working for long shifts in their working days and during holidays via telecommunication.
Lack of PPE
Participants repeatedly pointed out that PPE supplied by their hospitals were either inadequate or of low-quality. Though the government demanded on the mass media that every hospital has been provided with the required numbers of PPEs, the fact on the ground was different. Especially, study participants in private medical facilities need to buy their own PPEs, as they were not sure of the availability in the health facilities.
Low Social Acceptance
Social stigma was another challenge for the healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic. The neighbors perceived them as a nuisance and usually avoided communication for fear of infection. In some cases, landlords raised monthly house rents of the medical workers and evicted them from their property if they were tested COVID-positive. Sometimes, their maintenance of social distance became rather cruel, and this disturbed the healthcare professionals.
Mental Health Problems
People working in the medical sector are trained to think and act steadily in any medical emergency. Regardless of that training, participants mentioned that they had to cope with different psychological challenges, including anxiety, depression, insomnia, and fear of sudden death during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lack of Incentives
All participants were aware that there was no extra-incentive for them despite working extra hours. Some incentives were promised by the government, such as providing treatment cost in case of infection and providing an isolation room to ensure safe inhibition. But none was implemented in the real life. Further, participants strongly believed that these initiatives were not going to be implemented shortly.
Coping Strategies
All the participants expressed that belief upon God kept them relaxed. Support from family members and colleagues was also an essential coping mechanism. The healthcare professionals maintained regular conversations with colleagues maintaining social distance and tried to be benevolent with each other in their workplace. This supportive environment helped them a great deal in reducing their mental stress.
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