%0 Journal Article
%@ 1929-0748
%I JMIR Publications
%V 10
%N 9
%P e32663
%T Exploring the Well-being of Health Care Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Protocol for a Prospective Longitudinal Study
%A Liu,Jenny J W
%A Nazarov,Anthony
%A Plouffe,Rachel A
%A Forchuk,Callista A
%A Deda,Erisa
%A Gargala,Dominic
%A Le,Tri
%A Bourret-Gheysen,Jesse
%A Soares,Vanessa
%A Nouri,Maede S
%A Hosseiny,Fardous
%A Smith,Patrick
%A Roth,Maya
%A MacDougall,Arlene G
%A Marlborough,Michelle
%A Jetly,Rakesh
%A Heber,Alexandra
%A Albuquerque,Joy
%A Lanius,Ruth
%A Balderson,Ken
%A Dupuis,Gabrielle
%A Mehta,Viraj
%A Richardson,J Don
%+ MacDonald Franklin Operational Stress Injury Research Centre, Lawson Health Research Institute, St. Joseph's Health Care London, Parkwood Institute Research, Mental Health Building RM F4-367, 550 Wellington Road, London, ON, N6C 0A7, Canada, 1 519 685 4292 ext 48211, jenny.liu@sjhc.london.on.ca
%K COVID-19
%K health care worker
%K pandemic
%K mental health
%K wellbeing
%K survey
%K design
%K longitudinal
%K prospective
%K protocol
%K challenge
%K impact
%K distress
%K perception
%D 2021
%7 27.9.2021
%9 Protocol
%J JMIR Res Protoc
%G English
%X Background: Health care workers (HCWs) have experienced several stressors associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Structural stressors, including extended work hours, redeployment, and changes in organizational mandates, often intersect with interpersonal and personal stressors, such as caring for those with COVID-19 infections; worrying about infection of self, family, and loved ones; working despite shortages of personal protective equipment; and encountering various difficult moral-ethical dilemmas. Objective: The paper describes the protocol for a longitudinal study seeking to capture the unique experiences, challenges, and changes faced by HCWs during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study seeks to explore the impact of COVID-19 on the mental well-being of HCWs with a particular focus on moral distress, perceptions of and satisfaction with delivery of care, and how changes in work structure are tolerated among HCWs providing clinical services. Methods: A prospective longitudinal design is employed to assess HCWs’ experiences across domains of mental health (depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress, and well-being), moral distress and moral reasoning, work-related changes and telehealth, organizational responses to COVID-19 concerns, and experiences with COVID-19 infections to self and to others. We recruited HCWs from across Canada through convenience snowball sampling to participate in either a short-form or long-form web-based survey at baseline. Respondents to the baseline survey are invited to complete a follow-up survey every 3 months, for a total of 18 months. Results: A total of 1926 participants completed baseline surveys between June 26 and December 31, 2020, and 1859 participants provided their emails to contact them to participate in follow-up surveys. As of July 2021, data collection is ongoing, with participants nearing the 6- or 9-month follow-up periods depending on their initial time of self-enrollment. Conclusions: This protocol describes a study that will provide unique insights into the immediate and longitudinal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the dimensions of mental health, moral distress, health care delivery, and workplace environment of HCWs. The feasibility and acceptability of implementing a short-form and long-form survey on participant engagement and data retention will also be discussed. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/32663 
%M 34477557
%R 10.2196/32663
%U https://www.researchprotocols.org/2021/9/e32663
%U https://doi.org/10.2196/32663
%U http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34477557