New White Paper: Easing the Burdens of Stress on Healthcare Workers with the Hexoskin Stress Monitoring System

August 25, 2021

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have come to appreciate even more the hard work of our frontline healthcare workers. Their commitment towards their patients is being recognized and praised. However, the pandemic has only exacerbated aggravating factors that are affecting the wellbeing of hospital staff and healthcare professionals. These factors are related to their work environment, such as staff shortages, physical injuries, exposure to workplace hazards, and even verbal and physical abuse by patients and their families. Physicians, nurses, and surgeons are some of the healthcare professionals that hold demanding and stressful positions. Moreover, medical staff hold many responsibilities and duties which increase their level of daily stress. 

The pandemic has brought more burden to the medical personnel with the already high workload, the long hours, and the demanding work conditions, contributing to an increase of occupational stress, anxiety, and depression among frontline healthcare workers. 

According to recent studies, trauma-related stress among healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic range from 5.2% to 45% depending on the country or region. Another recent study performed in the US during the pandemic has shown that stress is higher among nursing assistants, younger clinicians, medical assistants, social workers, inpatient workers, women, and persons of color. 

Occupational stress can lead to burnout, distress, psychosomatic issues, and deterioration of quality of life. Occupational stress can also lead to the development of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Before the pandemic, the rates of post-traumatic stress disorder among healthcare workers were estimated to range between 10 to 20%. During the global pandemic, it is estimated that the prevalence of PTSD in healthcare workers was at 21.5%, with levels of depression and anxiety also reported to affect about 22% of medical staff.

Request our New White Paper

In our new Hexoskin White Paper on Easing the Burdens of Stress on Healthcare Workers with the Hexoskin Stress Monitoring System, we review the impacts of stress on the healthcare system and its consequences for the healthcare personnel, which can also affect the quality of care offered to patients due to absenteeism and staff shortages. The White Paper also reviews current and novel methods for monitoring stress levels with healthcare workers. Based on these observations, we present how the Hexoskin Smart Clothing and Stress Monitoring Solutions have been implemented for stress monitoring across the healthcare system using continuous and passive measurement of cardiac, respiratory, activity, and sleep data.

Additionally, we will review how clinical researchers are utilizing Hexoskin’s biometric data to further develop stress reduction interventions and implement policy changes to mitigate organizational stress and burnout. Finally, we will discuss how Hexoskin can be used to monitor the patients' health and reduce the workload of the healthcare staff by providing the evidence needed to support clinical decisions, evaluate the best ways to deliver care to patients and support a culture of evidence-informed decision-making. Request the White Paper today!

Hexoskin Has Your Back

Since the launch of the first Hexoskin Smart Clothing in 2012, we worked with professional organizations and leading academic & research institutions on breakthrough research & projects. We developed tailor-made programs to provide all the support you need to plan your project and getting started. This is why hundreds of world-class universities, government agencies, and companies are choosing Hexoskin to conduct evidence-based research, monitoring programs, and develop new applications with our industry-leading smart clothing solutions. Contact our team today to start planning your next project and get a quote based on our programs for academic researchers & students and professionals.