SUMMARY: The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic has had a substantial negative psychosocial impact due to both the outbreak and the global response to it. As we know from previous health crises, front-line workers are among the risk groups for developing serious mental health problems. As a result of the continuous exposure to highly stressful circumstances, directly in their jobs and indirectly through media consumption and related societal pressures, healthcare professionals are at increased risk for distress, compassion fatigue, burnout and emotional disorders. Recent studies have been revealing specific stressors faced by healthcare workers during the COVID-19 outbreak, such as limited resources, work overload, fear of infecting significant others and isolation/loneliness. However, research has shown heterogeneity in adaptation to adversities, with many individuals being able to bounce back. Based on this growing evidence, this article provides a clinical working framework to empower healthcare professionals, by critically discussing resilience-promoting strategies along the intra- and interpersonal dimensions of control, coherence and connectedness.

The restrictions imposed to control the COVID-19 pandemic had significant negative effects on the mental health of the general population, and particularly in nurses as frontline healthcare workers. The main goal of the present study was to analyze the direct and indirect effects, via social connectedness, of centrality of the COVID-19 outbreak on depressive symptoms. Furthermore, it is explored whether this association varied by group (nurses versus general population). The global sample included 326 individuals from the community and 316 nurses, who were administered self-reported questionnaires. Results revealed that event centrality of COVID-19 outbreak was linked to depressive symptoms, both directly and through the deterioration of social connectedness; moreover, this indirect effect was significant for both subsamples. Interventions aimed at preventing the deterioration of social connectedness may facilitate the decrease of depressive symptoms in the aftermath of the pandemic, particularly for nurses.

The extent to which a traumatic event becomes central to one’s identity and life story may influence both negative and positive outcomes. In the aftermath of COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, nurses have been showing positive transformations. However, research is not consistent about whether self-reported personal growth is real or just an illusion. The present study aimed to ascertain the level of agreement between nurses’ self- and proxy-reported post-traumatic growth (PTG). Furthermore, it intended to analyze the association between nurses’ perceived centrality and impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, and their self-/proxy-reported PTG. The global sample included 51 dyads. Nurses completed self-reported instruments to evaluate perceived centrality and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, as well as PTG. A proxy version of the PTG Inventory was used to assess significant others’ appraisals of nurses’ PTG. Overall, there were no differences between self- and proxy-reports of PTG, except for spiritual change. Nurses’ perceived centrality of the pandemic outbreak and impact of event were associated with self-reported PTG. Centrality and impact of the COVID-19 were not significantly correlated with proxy-reports of PTG, except for personal strength. Despite the considerable variability in the observed findings depending on the statistical analysis conducted (i.e., group versus individual level), the corroboration of nurses’ reports of PTG by significant others lends strong support to the notion that positive transformations after traumatic events are real. These findings highlight the relevance of integrating both positive and negative dimensions of adaptation when constructing psychological interventions for nurses, in the aftermath of COVID-19 outbreak.

Background: In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses may report positive transformations due to the struggles faced during the outbreak, but the factors explaining this phenomenon remain understudied. Objective: Considering the crucial role played by social ties and support to overcome adversity, the present research aims to explore social connectedness as a moderator between centrality of the COVID-19 outbreak and subsequent post-traumatic growth (PTG) in nurses. Specifically, the study sought to examine whether the longitudinal association between centrality of the COVID-19 outbreak and subsequent nurses’ PTG differed according to the levels of social connectedness. Methods: The global sample was composed of 180 nurses working in Portuguese healthcare institutions who answered online self-report surveys at two time points (baseline [T1] and follow-up at 6 months [T2]). Using self-report questionnaires, measures of centrality of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak and social connectedness were administered at the baseline, and PTG reports were obtained at the six-month follow-up. Attrition rate from T1 to T2 was 73%. Results: Results showed that social connectedness was a significant moderator in the relationship between centrality of the COVID-19 outbreak and PTG, with that association being stronger as the levels of social connectedness increased. Conclusions: These findings shed light on the importance of social connectedness in fostering PTG among nurses after the COVID-19 outbreak. Psychological interventions aimed at enhancing nurses’ constructive adjustment outcomes should acknowledge the occurrence of resilience and promote feelings of social connectedness and safeness to amplify potentially adaptive effects of the transformative nature of the pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted a social, economic and health crisis that had a major impact on the mental health of the global community, particularly nurses. The objective of the current study is to conduct a longitudinal evaluation of the trajectory of depressive, anxiety, trauma, and fear of COVID-19 symptoms, comparing self-reports of nurses and the general population over a six-month period. Self-report questionnaires were administered online to a sample of 180 nurses and 158 individuals from the general population for the baseline assessment (T1) and follow-up at 6 months (T2). Levels of symptoms reported by nurses were generally greater and tended to worsen over time, as opposed to the levels of symptoms reported by the general population that tended to improve. Levels of depressive, anxiety, and trauma symptoms were significantly different between nurses and the general population over time. Levels of fear of COVID-19 declined significantly from T1 to T2 in both groups. These results suggest that it is crucial to monitor the longer-term effects of COVID-19 and to develop resilience-promoting interventions tailored to the unique needs of this vulnerable group.

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted individuals’ well-being, social ties and family dynamics. While family and social interactions and bonds are known to enhance psychological adjustment and well-being, their role in influencing individual quality of life during times of crisis remains underexplored. The aims of this study were: to investigate the relationship between family functioning, social connectedness and individual quality of life; and to examine the direct and indirect effects of family functioning on the individual quality of life, through social connectedness, during the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 814 participants, using self-report measures. Correlation coefficients were calculated to analyze the associations between variables. Regression-based analyses were performed to examine direct and indirect effects. Social connectedness mediated the link between family functioning and individual quality of life. This mediation model explained 41% of the variance in individual quality of life. These findings highlight the importance of positive family functioning and the sense of safeness and connectedness within the larger social environment in promoting individual quality of life during the COVID-19 pandemic. Interventions that strengthen family relationships seem to foster social bonds and ultimately improve quality of life outcomes in times of societal stress.