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The World Health Organization (WHO) outlined five steps on Thursday to help governments and health care leaders better protect health workers from violence, physical and biological hazards and improve their mental health in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic. The WHO also calls on governments to promote national programs for health worker safety and to connect health worker safety policies with existing patient safety policies.
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In the wake of the pandemic, the organization highlighted an “alarming increase” in verbal harassment, discrimination and physical violence among healthcare workers.
A patient is taken to Cobble Hill Health Center by emergency medical workers in the Brooklyn borough of New York on April 17, 2020. (AP Photo / John Minchillo, File)
The WHO also said that the global health crisis has “placed extraordinary levels of psychological stress” on health workers.
Working in high-demand environments for long hours while living in constant fear of exposure to disease exacerbates that stress, the WHO said. Furthermore, many have been separated from their families and “face social stigmatization.”
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“No country, hospital or clinic can keep its patients safe unless it keeps its healthcare workers safe,” said WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, adding that these steps are to ensure the “Safe working conditions, training, pay and the respect they deserve.”
Even before the pandemic occurred, medical professionals were already at increased risk of suicide in all parts of the world, the organization said.
Among the steps, the WHO says that the administrative burden on healthcare workers should be minimized, there should be “adequate levels of safe staff” within the facility, and there should be insurance coverage for work-related risks, “especially those working in high risk areas. “
Workers should also have access to appropriate personal protective equipment, as well as mental well-being and social support services, according to the WHO. The organization also wants to promote a culture of zero tolerance for violence.
Officials say that protecting healthcare workers is “key to ensuring” a functioning healthcare system and society.
This became even clearer during the pandemic, Tedros said.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has reminded all of us of the vital role that healthcare workers play in alleviating suffering and saving lives,” he added.
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