SARS經驗對COVID-19爆發時醫療機構員工身心健康影響之初探

Association of SARS experience with physical and mental health of healthcare organization employees in the early stages of COVID-19 pandemic

目的：調查COVID-19爆發初期對醫療機構員工身心健康、職場疲勞量表、照顧高危險性傳染疾病病患壓力的影響，並進一步探究是否經歷SARS疫情對上述三個項目有影響。 方法：採橫斷性問卷調查設計，針對北部某醫學中心員工年滿20歲以上且年資滿三個月以上之正職員工進行調查。研究問卷包含「身心健康量表」、「職場疲勞量表」、「照顧高危險性傳染疾病病患之壓力量表（僅目前工作從事醫療行為者需填寫）」及基本資料等四個部份。以T檢定檢驗有無SARS經驗的參與者之間的差異。 結果：共收案224位受試者以女性（169位，77.52%）、20–30歲（79位，36.24%）為多數，曾於2003年SARS期間於第一線接觸臨床病人共43位（19.20%）。所有受試者的心理及生理健康狀況的平均總分分別為11.74±2.87分、11.16±3.13分；職場疲勞部份各構面平均得分介於33.02~45.89分；高危險性傳染疾病之壓力量表四構面的平均得分介於9.35~12.89分。有經歷過2003年SARS疫情者，其職場疲勞程度（個人疲勞、工作疲勞、工作過度投入）、照護高危性傳染疾病病患壓力（防護設備引起的不適、感染管制的困擾與焦慮、照顧病人的負擔、總分），都較未曾經歷過SARS者高且達統計上的顯著差異。 結論：有經歷過SARS疫情者在面臨COVID-19疫情初期時，其職場疲勞及照護高危險性傳染病病患壓力都較未經歷過SARS疫情者高。

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the health status, occupational burnout, and stress of caring for patients with highly infectious diseases among health care organization employees in the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak and to investigate whether their experiences were associated with having previous experience with SARS. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, employees aged 20 and older who had a service period of 3 months or longer at a medical center in northern Taiwan were invited to participate in a questionnaire survey. The questionnaire comprised physical and mental health scales, the Occupational Burnout Inventory, the Stress Scale of Caring for Highly Infectious Disease Patients (only required for medical personnel), and questions regarding basic demographic information. Differences between participants with and without SARS experience were examined using t tests. Results: Two hundred twenty-four participants completed the questionnaire, and among them, 77.5% were women, 36.2% were in the age group 20–30 years, and 19.2% were frontline staff during the 2003 SARS outbreak. The mean scores on mental and physical health scales were 11.74±(2.87 standard deviation [SD]) and 11.16±(3.13 [SD]), respectively. The mean scores for the four dimensions of the Occupational Burnout Inventory and the Stress Scale of Caring for Highly Infectious Disease Patients ranged from 33.02 to 45.89 and 9.35 to 12.89, respectively. Participants who had experienced the 2003 SARS outbreak had significantly higher scores than those who had not in the three dimensions of occupational burnout–namely personal burnout, work-related burnout, and overcommitment to work–and in the dimensions relating to the stress of caring for patients with highly infectious diseases, including discomfort caused by protective equipment, difficulties and anxiety regarding infection control, and patient care workload, as well as higher total scores. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that health care workers who experienced the 2003 SARS outbreak had higher levels of occupational burnout and stress when caring for patients with highly infectious diseases in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic than colleagues without such experience.