COPENHAGEN: One in three doctors and nurses across Europe report suffering from depression or anxiety according to a new World Health Organization study.
The depression rate among healthcare professionals is five times higher than that found in Europe’s general population.
WHO Europe director Hans Kluge described the mental health crisis among health workers as a threat to health system integrity.
More than one in ten healthcare professionals have considered ending their lives or engaging in self-harm according to the findings.
Doctors and nurses experiencing workplace violence, consistently long hours, and shift work face significantly higher risks of depression and anxiety.
Healthcare workers show double the prevalence of suicidal thoughts compared to the general European population.
Female doctors and nurses demonstrate higher likelihood of depression and anxiety while male doctors show greater tendency toward alcohol addiction.
Latvia and Poland reported the highest depression levels with nearly half of healthcare workers affected.
Denmark and Iceland recorded the lowest depression rates at approximately 15% among surveyed health professionals.
The comprehensive study gathered 90,000 responses from healthcare workers across 27 EU nations plus Iceland and Norway.
One third of doctors and nurses reported experiencing workplace bullying or violent threats during the past year.
Ten percent of healthcare workers experienced physical violence and/or sexual harassment in their workplaces.
One quarter of doctors reported working more than 50 hours per week according to the study data.
Over 30% of doctors and a quarter of nurses work under temporary contracts increasing job security anxiety.
The report demands zero tolerance for violence and harassment within healthcare environments.
It calls for reforms to eliminate overtime culture and guarantee mental health service access for medical professionals.
These measures become increasingly urgent given Europe’s projected shortage of nearly one million healthcare workers by 2030.
Kluge emphasized that Europe cannot afford to lose healthcare professionals to burnout, despair, or workplace violence. – AFP
