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The Impact of the COVID 19 Pandemic on the Health and Well being of Ohio s Healthcare Workers Executive Summary Preliminary research completed by

INTRODUCTION In October of 2020 the Ohio Physicians Health Program OhioPHP in partnership with Mighty Crow Media put forth a proposal to conduct a statewide assessment of lessons learned from the COVID 19 pandemic as it related to the impact the pandemic had on the health and well being of healthcare professionals The COVID 19 pandemic exacerbated existing challenges within our healthcare system for patients and for healthcare professionals Fear loss lack of personal protective equipment ongoing surges and much more have impacted everyone in ways we cannot even begin to understand Preexisting levels of stress and burnout were further elevated as healthcare professionals faced this unknown and ever challenging pandemic Recognizing the need to know more about how to support our healthcare professionals in these fields especially as it relates to their emotional welfare became readily apparent The OhioPHP received a grant from the Federation of State Medical Boards Foundation that supported the development of an online survey targeted at healthcare professionals across the state of Ohio to gauge their pandemic related experiences levels of stress overall well being and knowledge and use of supportive resources OhioPHP in collaboration with 13 of Ohio s Professional Licensing Boards deployed the survey in July 2021 Between July 7 2021 and August 20 2021 13 532 professionals responded to the survey This report provides an overview of these findings OHIOPHP COVID 19 WELL BEING SURVEY PRELIMINARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2022 01

SUMMARY This report summarizes data collected from 13 532 respondents via an online survey administered statewide between July 7 2021 and August 20 2021 Male 20 13 532 Respondents Female 76 THE BOARDS REPRESENTING THE LARGEST NUMBER OF RESPONDENTS Ohio Board of Nursing State Medical Board of Ohio State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy Ohio Counselor Social Worker and Marriage and Family Therapist Board OHIOPHP COVID 19 WELL BEING SURVEY PRELIMINARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2022 02

BURNOUT AMONG OHIO S HEALTHCARE WORKERS Already a well known issue among healthcare workers burnout has dramatically accelerated during the pandemic Far more workers reported feeling emotionally drained on a daily basis during the pandemic when compared to prior to the pandemic Respondents were asked How often did you feel you did not really care what happens to patients Despite the essential nature of healthcare work many professionals are finding less meaning in their jobs and felt apathetic while caring for patients APATHY TOWARDS PATIENTS Percentage of Respondents 6 347 4 increase in the number of healthcare professionals that reported not caring what happens to patients every day during the pandemic 2 0 Once a week A few times a week Prior to the COVID 19 Pandemic Every day During the COVID 19 Pandemic FEELING EMOTIONALLY DRAINED FROM WORK During the COVID 19 Pandemic increase in the number of healthcare professionals that reported feeling emotionally drained every day during the pandemic Prior to the COVID 19 Pandemic 367 25 of Ohio s healthcare workers indicated they felt emotionally drained every day 5 5 25 25 OHIOPHP COVID 19 WELL BEING SURVEY PRELIMINARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2022 03

A LOOK INTO MENTAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE USE 60 Survey respondents overwhelmingly indicated they had an exacerbation of feeling down depressed and hopeless Many respondents also indicated more concern for their own use of alcohol and other substances during the pandemic and some reported an increase in thoughts of suicide Percentage of Respondents HOW OFTEN HAVE YOU FELT DOWN DEPRESSED OR HOPELESS 40 20 0 Not at all More than half the days Prior to the COVID 19 Pandemic Nearly every day During the COVID 19 Pandemic THOUGHTS OF DEATH OR SUICIDE Due to concerns about healthcare workers experiencing an exacerbation in mental health issues we thought it was imperative to assess suicide risk Thoughts of suicide for respondents increased from 3 07 prior to the pandemic to 5 76 during the pandemic INCREASES IN SUBSTANCE USE Respondents alcohol and other mood altering substance use as a strategy for coping with work stress burnout compassion fatigue etc is of concern due to the negative impact it may have on one s mental health 23 of respondents indicated an increase or significant increase in their substance use during the pandemic 23 87 5 702 of Healthcare professionals indicated that they had an increase or significant increase in their alcohol or substance use during the pandemic Increase in thoughts of suicide among healthcare professionals in Ohio during the pandemic increase in healthcare professionals feeling down depressed or hopeless nearly every day during the pandemic OHIOPHP COVID 19 WELL BEING SURVEY PRELIMINARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2022 04

THE STATUS OF OHIO S HEALTHCARE WORKER S WELL BEING WELL BEING ASSESSMENT Survey respondents were asked about various stresses brought about by the pandemic Our intention was to assess overall well being and to see which factors played the biggest role in increasing the stress of healthcare workers Over 50 of respondents had an increase in their workload 26 of respondents indicated their workload increased and 30 indicated it significantly increased during the pandemic Respondents were also asked about stressors during the pandemic and to rate these stressors from not a stressor to extreme stressor Some of the top significant or extreme stressors for healthcare professionals during the pandemic were insufficient personal protective equipment PPE fears of spreading COVID19 an inconsistent schedule in the workplace lack of quality time with loved ones and being too tired 59 1 in 5 healthcare workers experienced unemployment being furloughed or laid off during the pandemic of healthcare professionals indicated that insufficient communication from leadership was a stressor during the pandemic OHIOPHP COVID 19 WELL BEING SURVEY PRELIMINARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2022 05

DID YOU GET ADEQUATE REST FROM YOUR JOB 60 40 59 20 0 Yes No N A No Response 56 30 of healthcare workers surveyed indicated their workload increased during the pandemic of respondents stated their workload SIGNIFICANTLY increased during the pandemic STRESSORS DURING THE PANDEMIC 75 50 25 46 65 37 60 57 Insufficient PPE Spreading Covid 19 Inconsistent Schedule Lack of quality time with friends and family Too Tired 0 OHIOPHP COVID 19 WELL BEING SURVEY PRELIMINARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2022 06

RESOURCE ASSESSMENT OhioPHP supports the health and wellness of healthcare professionals to enhance patient care and safety through connection to resources and services OhioPHP aims for healthcare professionals to receive confidential and compassionate support to improve their health and well being Survey results provided insight into how few professionals accessed such support despite indicating mental health concerns Survey data indicated that healthcare providers are exhausted both physically and mentally They are stressed both at work and home Survey respondents indicated an increase in depression and hopelessness during the pandemic as well as thoughts of suicide and concerns about substance use Yet only 1 in 4 sought emotional or mental health support Only 1 in 4 healthcare professionals sought emotional support during the pandemic OBSTACLES TO SEEKING SUPPORT Respondents who indicated that they did not seek emotional services during the pandemic were asked to identify obstacles to seeking assistances Below are examples of obstacles identified 56 Time Commitment 40 Did not know where to turn for support 31 Confidentiality concerns OHIOPHP COVID 19 WELL BEING SURVEY PRELIMINARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2022 07

LIKELIHOOD TO PARTICIPATE Respondents were asked Does your workplace offer a program to address mental health concerns e g Employee Assistance Program EAP More than half 51 of respondents indicated that their workplace did offer a program while 30 indicated their workplace did not LIKELIHOOD TO PARTICIPATE IN EAP Percentage of Respondents 40 30 20 10 0 Very Unlikely Very Likely IN CONCLUSION As expected overall well being worsened during the pandemic But data shows that many healthcare professionals were already experiencing significant health and well being challenges prior to the pandemic We hope these findings can be used to find ways to support and improve the lives of healthcare professionals during both pandemic and non pandemic times OHIOPHP COVID 19 WELL BEING SURVEY PRELIMINARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2022 08

NEXT STEPS Where do we go from here This data is a direct response from the healthcare professionals in our own backyards here in Ohio our friends our family members our peers Now is the time to act OhioPHP has been serving healthcare professionals for over 40 years We have seen firsthand the positive impact safe supportive and confidential services have on the health and well being of Ohio s healthcare professionals We must not sit idly by as we now have heard directly from the healthcare workers in Ohio about how much they are and have been struggling with burnout anxiety and mental health Below you will find OhioPHP s next steps to addressing this growing problem and how you can get involved 01 Develop Safe Haven Programs 02 Distribute Data Far and Wide 03 Continue the research Confidential safe haven programs should be created by every healthcare licensing board We believe at OhioPHP that every healthcare professional should have access to these crucial programs For the first time ever we have current data about ALL healthcare professionals in Ohio We must spread this information to as many corners of the state as possible in order to make lasting and impactful change This report is one of many you will see over the next several years We are actively fundraising to continue this research With over 13 000 responses we still have much more data to provide with even more insights into how best to support our healthcare workers OHIOPHP COVID 19 WELL BEING SURVEY PRELIMINARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2022 09

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We must thank those who worked tirelessly on this project and afforded us the ability to collect and capture the stories of Ohio s healthcare workers OhioPHP s Board of Directors Our Funders Federation of State Medical Boards Foundation Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services And a special thanks to our researchers at Mighty Crow Media Gretchen Clark Hammond PhD MSW LSW LCDCIII TTS Robert Santucci PRh Rebecca J McCloskey PhD MSW LISW S Kathleen Gallant BA Without you this would not be possible CONTACT If you would like to learn more about this project or schedule a meeting with the OhioPHP team please contact Sarah Damiani sdamiani ophp org 614 841 9690 x34 OHIOPHP COVID 19 WELL BEING SURVEY PRELIMINARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2022 10

Ohio Physicians Health Program 130 E Chestnut Street Suite 200 Columbus Ohio 43215 614 841 9690 www ophp org Supporting Ohio s Healthcare Professionals since 1995