Developing Supports to Retain Critical Care Healthcare Professionals

Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, the critical care workforce has been exposed to a multitude of psychological risks, and because of this health care professionals are experiencing unprecedented levels of exhaustion, burnout, anxiety, depression, stress, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and moral distress. These psychological effects of the pandemic have led to an increase in workforce turnover. It is essential to identify influencing factors and environmental barriers that affect health care professionals’ psychological wellbeing and to develop supports to retain these experts. With current workforce shortages, critical care settings cannot sustain safe and effective patient care, expand, or prepare for further healthcare crises. Alberta Health Services has made Supporting Our People a priority. This research has the potential to achieve this goal by positively affecting the mental health of health care professionals as well as the work environment and patient care.

Intern: 
Sadie Deschenes
Faculty Supervisor: 
Shannon Scott;Sean Bagshaw
Province: 
Alberta
Partner University: 
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