Exploring the effects of occupational stress on healthcare workers’ wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic placed frontline healthcare workers (HCWs) under unprecedented occupational stress. Understanding the impact of such stress on this population is critical given their exposure to high-risk working conditions during public health emergencies.
Objective: This scoping review examined available evidence on the impact of occupational stress on the wellbeing of healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods: A structured scoping review was conducted across four electronic databases; CINAHL, PubMed, Medline Ovid, and EMBASE; alongside Google Scholar. Following PRISMA guidelines, 29,057 articles were identified, of which 27 met the inclusion criteria for final review.
Results: Anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), burnout, peritraumatic distress, alexithymia, poor sleep quality (insomnia), and general psychological distress were reported as key impacts of occupational stress. Frontline workers; particularly nurses, midwives, and physicians, showed disproportionately higher rates of these outcomes.
Conclusion: The complex working conditions during COVID-19 significantly compromised the psychological and physical wellbeing of HCWs globally. The review recommends evidence-based interventions, policy reforms, and organisational support mechanisms to protect HCW wellbeing in future health crises.