The capacity to adapt: Documenting the relationship between stressors and probable depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress at two time points during the COVID-19 pandemic

Educational differences in mental health-related quality of life during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany: the mediating role of pandemic-induced psychosocial stress

Objectives

A large body of evidence shows poorer mental health among lower socioeconomic groups, with chronic stress being an important pathway in this relationship. It was expected that the mental health of people with low socioeconomic status may have been particularly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. While it has been established that stress also impacted mental health during the pandemic, the aim of this study was to analyze if pandemic-induced psychosocial stress (PIPS) mediated educational differences in mental health-related quality of life (MHRQOL) and which life domains were particularly affected.

Methods

The data came from the population-based representative study "Corona Monitoring Nationwide - Wave 2 (RKI-SOEP-2)," from November 2021-February 2022, restricted to the working age population (18-67 years, n = 7,425). The mediating role of PIPS in educational differences (fractional rank variable from 0 [lowest] to 1 [highest education]) in MHRQOL was assessed for the life domains family, partnership, financial situation, work/school, social life, and leisure time. We used causal mediation analysis to estimate the total, indirect, and direct effects.

Results

MHRQOL increased with higher education. Higher education was associated with more PIPS in the domain's family, social life, and leisure time, while lower education was associated with more financial PIPS. PIPS in the life domains family, financial situation, leisure time, and social life significantly mediated educational differences in MHRQOL. No significant mediation effect was found for partnership and work/school PIPS.

Conclusion

PIPS contributed to educational differences in MHRQOL, with different educational levels showing more stress in different life domains. Group-targeted and life domain-specific approaches for prevention and intervention should be considered.

Research on the relationship between nurses' compliance with standard precautions, servant leadership and emotional exhaustion: A cross-sectional survey

AIM

This study aimed to analyse the effects of servant leadership on nurses' emotional failure and compliance with standard precautions and to explore the moderating effect of individual resilience.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional survey.

METHODS

This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from October 9 to November 1, 2022. The convenience sampling method was used to collect questionnaire data from 924 clinical nurses in a third-class general hospital in Chongqing, China.

RESULTS

The emotional exhaustion and compliance with standard precautions were at the general level. Servant leadership mediated by emotional exhaustion had a significant positive predictive effect on compliance with standard precautions. Personal resilience played a negative moderating role in the relationship between servant leadership and emotional exhaustion. For nurses with low resilience, servant leadership had a greater impact on emotional exhaustion.

CONCLUSION

The current compliance with standard precautions for clinical nurses is not high due to emotional exhaustion. The level of servant leadership can alleviate nurses' emotional exhaustion and improve compliance with standard precautions. Especially for nurses with low personal resilience, the care and support of department leaders are needed.

IMPACT

We found that the compliance with standard precautions is not high, and the link between emotional exhaustion, servant leadership and compliance with standard precautions provides a basis for further patient care.

NO PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

There was no patient or public involvement.

IMPACT STATEMENT

Nurses are the key population for hospital infection prevention and control, and their level of compliance with standard precautions is of great significance for hospital infection prevention and control. However, in practice, nurses' compliance with standard precautions is generally low. Most of the previous studies on nurses' compliance with standard precautions were conducted from the perspective of individual nurses, based on the staff's 'knowledge, belief, and action' to study the current status of compliance with standard precautions and the factors affecting adherence, with less attention paid to the influence of psychological, environmental, and organizational factors. Therefore, the study focuses on the impact of servant leadership and emotional exhaustion on standard precautionary adherence, which is of great significance for good care management at the organizational level. It also explored how the impact of servant leadership on emotional exhaustion varies across levels of resilience, which is important for accurately identifying different types of nursing staff and targeting assistance.