Quality of work of occupational therapists during the Covid-19 pandemic

Abstract

Introduction: Stress is an aggravating factor for health and a major contributor to the onset of diseases. The pandemic has become a situation no one would forget, above all, working in Geriatrics where it is hitting hard. Objective: To collect information about the repercussions of the Burnout Syndrome on the quality of life at work of Occupational Therapists working in the field of geriatrics in the Autonomous Community of Extremadura during the pandemic. Methodology: It is a descriptive cross-sectional study, carried out in 50 occupational therapists that accepted to be part of it in an anonymous and voluntary way. Information was collected through an ad hoc survey of 20 questions to assess the employment situation of the professionals in June, July and August 2020. Results: After data analysis, we can confirm that symptoms of nervousness were found in the 70% of the workers, and of fatigue in the 80% over one to two days of the week. 52,0% consider it necessary to add another Occupational Therapist to reduce excessive labor load and emotional involvement and thus be able to carry out quality interventions. Also, depending on the number of years they’ve been working, the workers show different stages of the syndrome, predominating the stage of enthusiasm and the stage of stagnation of the Burnout Syndrome. Conclusions: This study shows that Occupational Therapists who work in Geriatric Residences in Extremadura have Burnout Syndrome, so their personal and labor life is being affected.