Original Article

Impact of COVID-19 Policies on Hospitalists’ Psychological Safety

Authors: Lily Rotman Devaraj, MD, Benjamin Geisler, MD, MPH, Cynthia Cooper, MD, Arabella Simpkin Begin, MD, MMSc

Abstract

Objectives: The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic brought about many changes in work environment and interpersonal interactions to prevent the spread of infection. Policies such as ubiquitous masking, virtual meetings, physician distancing, and decreased communal eating changed the inpatient work environment. This study aims to look at the impact of these changes on hospitalists’ psychological safety.

Methods: We surveyed hospitalists on how these changes affected their well-being and feelings of psychological safety.

Results: Masking, virtual meetings, and fewer opportunities to eat together decreased connection with colleagues. Virtual meetings and social distancing decreased some aspects of psychological safety.

Conclusions: This study highlights the importance of finding ways to foster connection and decrease burnout while continuing to prevent the spread of infection.
Posted in: Infectious Disease138

Full Article

Having trouble viewing the article content below? Click here to open it directly.

Images

Download Image

References

1. Shah K, Chaudhari G, Kamrai D, et al. How essential is to focus on physician’s health and burnout in coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic? Cureus 2020;12:e7538–e7538.
 
2. Pfefferbaum B, North CS. Mental health and the Covid-19 pandemic. N Engl J Med 2020;383:510–512.
 
3. Devaraj LR, Cooper C, Begin AS. Creating psychological safety on medical teams in times of crisis. J Hosp Med 2021;16:47–49.
 
4. Kahn WA. Psychological conditions of personal engagement and disengagement at work. Acad Manage J 1990;33:692–724.
 
5. Edmondson A. Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams. Adm Sci Q 1999;44:350–383.
 
6. Gerrity MS, White KP, DeVellis RF, et al. Physicians’ reactions to uncertainty: refining the constructs and scales. Motiv Emot 1995;19:175–191.
 
7. Anderson N, West MA. Team Climate Inventory: Manual and User’s Guide. Windsor, ON, Canada: ASE; 1994.
 
8. Huth K, Weinstock PH. Masks: the new face of healthcare and simulation. Simul Healthc 2020;15:375–376.
 
9. Edmondson AC, Daley G. How to foster psychological safety in virtual meetings. https://hbr.org/2020/08/how-to-foster-psychological-safety-in-virtual-meetings. Published August 25, 2020. Accessed May 30, 2023.
 
10. Simpkin AL, Chang Y, Yu L, et al. Assessment of job satisfaction and feeling valued in academic medicine. JAMA Intern Med 2019;179:992–994.
 
11. Knyazev GG, Bocharov AV, Slobodskaya HR, et al. Personality-linked biases in perception of emotional facial expressions. Pers Individ Dif 2008;44:1093–1104.
 
12. Akert RM, Panter AT. Extraversion and the ability to decode nonverbal communication. Pers Individ Dif 1988;9:965–972.
 
13. Rakowsky S, Flashner BM, Doolin J, et al. Five questions for residency leadership in the time of COVID-19: reflections of chief medical residents from an internal medicine program. Acad Med 2020; DOI: 10.1097/ACM. 0000000000003419.