Mental Health of Professionals Working in Pediatric Intensive Care Units During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Health professionals are extremely exposed to psychosocial risks, as they experience, in general, high levels of stress, anxiety, fatigue and suffering, due to the nature and location of their work. As a result, the health and well being of these professionals can be significantly compromised. In outbreaks of serious infectious diseases and pandemics, these risks become amplified and the health team is at greater risk of falling ill, presenting changes in mental health and psychological trauma, while caring for infected patients and becoming potential contaminants in their family and community. The objective is to study the mental health of professionals who work in Pediatric Intensive Care Units (PICUs) in Brazil, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The primary outcome will be the incidence of burnout in the team involved with the care of critically ill children. Secondary outcomes such as anxiety, depression, quality of professional life, compassionate fatigue and post-traumatic stress disorder will be measured. Possible associations between demographic, work and coping variables (social support and resilience) with mental and emotional health outcomes will be investigated, in an exploratory character. It is a multicenter, observational, longitudinal study, with a descriptive and exploratory analytical component. Data collection will be carried out through an electronic survey during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.