May is Mental Health Awareness month and a time to take stock of our mental health status and needs. Since March of 2020, life as we knew it has changed dramatically. The Covid-19 pandemic has affected so many areas of our lives including our mental health, finances, jobs, social life, family life, and our overall well-being. Our daily lives have been turned upside down.

Pandemic Stress

Words such as "quarantine" and "social distancing" have become part of our vocabulary and roll off our tongues as if this is our new normal. The mental health effects of social isolation, constant fear, and anxiety related to getting the virus, losing a job, or working from home and being on lock-down will be far-reaching into the upcoming months and years. Individuals with preexisting mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety are reporting exacerbations in these conditions.

This year Nurse’s Week is being celebrated May 6th through May 12th. The nursing profession is held in very high esteem by the U.S. public. For the past 15 years, nursing has been voted the most trusted profession by the Gallup’s poll survey because of nursing’s ethics and honesty. The public views nurses as “angels” of the healthcare system and holds them in very high regard. Nurse’s Week has always been a time to honor and shine a light on nurses for what they do, but this year takes on an entirely new level of praise.

Nursing During the Pandemic

In looking at magazines and newspaper articles for the past six weeks of the pandemic, pictures of nurses are everywhere comforting patients, holding their hands, administering treatments and care. Despite being overworked, tired, and exhausted ,the pictures show seasoned professionals in masks and gowns on the front lines rendering care to patients.

The expectations for nurses during this time went beyond the physical care of the patient. There were so many circumstances during the Covid-19 pandemic that made taking care of patients unique and difficult.

The Covid-19 pandemic continues to move through the world and the U.S. unlike any disease we have seen before. Early on in the pandemic, the experts identified the risk factors that would predispose a person to getting Covid-19. This included people age 65 and older, people with underlying illnesses such as hypertension, heart disease and diabetes, men more than women and obese individuals.

The Covid-19 pandemic has proven to be an unprecedented public health event globally. So many patient advocates and healthcare workers are dealing with so many unusual and "first time" clinical management issues. The usual "playbook" of clinical management and navigation of patient care has been changed and altered almost hourly as the pandemic moves through the U.S.

Issues such as critical care management, including when to place a patient on a ventilator and what medications should be used for treatment have been developed on an “as-needed basis”. As with any new disease, treatments are being developed as the needs arise. To say that healthcare workers must be resourceful is an understatement.

As nurse patient advocates, the challenges we faced at Healthlink Advocates (HLA) were more community-based issues, such as how to get our clients to their procedures and appointments safely and where and how to get our clients tested for Covid-19, if needed.

Read the full article to get the latest guidelines for home precautions from the CDC.