COVID-19's impact on healthcare staff: the evolving picture

June's roundup provided an overview of emerging guidelines on the management of patients presenting with symptoms of COVID-19 (Paterson, 2019). This month, we will evaluate research, information and guidelines around the involvement of the healthcare professional in the COVID-19 pandemic. There are many emerging studies looking at how the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting on healthcare staff's mental and emotional health and trying to prevent stress and distress.

Personal protective equipment (PPE) is at the heart of controlling the spread of the COVID-19 infection in hospitals and care setting, as well as the wearing of face masks in public spaces. The use and type of PPE required has been a subject of much debate. Little research existed around the effectiveness and adherence to PPE used in COVID-19. A cross-sectional study in Wuhan Province on the use of PPE by healthcare professionals reveals that procurement and use of appropriate PPE protected healthcare professionals from contracting the virus. The study involved 420 participants and focussed on doctors and nurses deployed to four hospitals in Wuhan, China, for 6–8 weeks during the peak of the country's pandemic between January and April. The participants were all involved in treating COVID-19 patients and undertook aerosol-generating procedures, having been provided with appropriate PPE and training on its use. The main outcome measures centred around the development of symptoms of the virus and swabbing for the virus, as well as antibody testing.