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Taking care of the caregivers: The moderating role of reflective supervision in the relationship between COVID‐19 stress and the mental and professional well‐being of the IECMH workforce
Author(s) -
Morelen Diana,
Najm Julia,
Wolff Megan,
Daniel Kelly
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
infant mental health journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.693
H-Index - 75
eISSN - 1097-0355
pISSN - 0163-9641
DOI - 10.1002/imhj.21956
Subject(s) - workforce , covid-19 , psychology , stress (linguistics) , nursing , mental health , burnout , clinical psychology , medicine , psychiatry , political science , linguistics , philosophy , disease , pathology , virology , outbreak , infectious disease (medical specialty) , law
Abstract The present study examined the relationships between COVID‐related stress, mental health and professional burnout in the infant and early child mental health (IECMH) workforce and examined reflective supervision and consultation (RSC) as a potential protective factor in the context of COVID‐related stress. Participants included 123 adults ( n = 121 female, modal age range 30–39 years) in the TN IECMH workforce (mean years of experience = 13.6 years) surveyed in June/July 2020. Sector representation was quite varied (home visiting, childcare, child welfare, early intervention). Results indicated the majority (63%) of the sample was caring for someone else (e.g., child or elderly person) while working at home, 46% of the sample had depression symptoms (18% in the moderate‐severe range), and 75% of the sample had anxiety symptoms (33% in the moderate‐severe range). Higher COVID stress was associated with higher internalizing symptoms and burnout levels and this relationship was mediated by self‐care behaviors such that the more COVID stress one reported, the fewer self‐care behaviors they engaged in, and the higher the risk for internalizing and burnout. Finally, the pathway from COVID stress to self‐care behaviors was moderated by RSC. IECMH professionals who received less than 1 year (or no experience) of RSC showed a significant decrease in self‐care behaviors during times of low, average and high levels of COVID stress compared to those who received 1 year or more of RSC. Implications for both policy and practice will be discussed.