The gendered impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on academics working in medical imaging and radiation therapy

Abstract

Introduction

Healthcare workers have been particularly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, as have those educating them, albeit differently. Several papers have identified a gendered difference in the impact of the pandemic. This study aims to determine impact of COVID-19 on the health and wellbeing of Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy (MIRT) academics.

Methods

An electronic survey was designed in English on Qualtrics and distributed via email and online platforms to MIRT academics. Fifty-one questions were used; demographic (n = 9), work patterns (n = 11), general health (n = 8), mental health (n = 2), physical health (n = 10), and workload (n = 11). Overall, 46 were quantitative and five were qualitative ‘open-ended’ questions. The survey was open between 3rd March 2021 to 1st May 2021. Quantitative analysis was carried out using MS Excel v 16.61.1ss and SPSS v26.

Results

The survey reached 32 countries globally and 412 participants; 23.5% identified as men (n = 97) and 76.5% as women (n = 315). Women reported worse sleep quality than men and overwhelmingly felt they would not like to work remotely again if given a choice. A higher percentage of males, 73% versus 40.5% of females reported getting outdoors less. The CORE-10 validated questionnaire found that 10.3% of males (n = 42) and 2.7% of females (n = 11) experienced severe psychological distress the week immediately before the survey was conducted.

Conclusion

While the study has identified some gender-related differences in the impact of COVID-19 on the mental and physical health of MIRT academics, both males and females have experienced significant deterioration in health and wellbeing due to the pandemic.

Implication for practice

Developing mental health support for MIRT academics and defining optimum methods for raising awareness is recommended.

Introduction

Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy academics have been adapting teaching and research practice to the global pandemic since March 2020, when a worldwide pandemic was declared by the World-Health-Organisation.^1,2 After the first cases of COVID-19 were reported in Wuhan, China, in December 2019,³ the rapid spread of the virus and the lack of knowledge about its symptoms and transmission led to the implementation of Public Health measures, including face mask-wearing, social distancing, travel restrictions, working from home and national lockdowns. Restrictions on public activity were applied at different time points worldwide to coincide with the virus peak in each country. Teaching in-person was stopped, learning moved on-line, research labs were inaccessible, international students were stranded, arranged collaborations and conferences cancelled.

Society has experienced “an unprecedented crisis in our interconnected world where health and wellbeing, security, and economy affect populations across borders”⁴ Globally, as of 3 June 2022, there have been 528,816,317 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 6,294,969 deaths, reported to WHO.^5,6 Adapting to new ways of living and compliance with ever-changing guidelines and restrictions has become a new way of life for many.

The lives of many frontline healthcare workers, including radiographers, have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.^7,8 Healthcare professionals have faced particular challenges concerning their well-being and workflow- or workload-related.⁹ Radiographers, radiation therapists, sonographers, nuclear medicine technologists have worked extra hours, often without taking any leave, wearing heavy, multi-layer Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) while caring for the unwell patients. Many radiographers contracted the virus, became unwell, and some have died. Some healthcare workers have lived with “long COVID” for prolonged timeframes following their inceptive infection.¹⁰ The rest worked with the fear of becoming unwell themselves; despite all these challenges, radiographers have faced the pandemic with remarkable bravery and altruism.

Although radiography academics and researchers were instructed to work from home during the pandemic, they have faced different challenges. Employment uncertainty has impacted many radiographers in academia. A sharp fall in the number of international students placed economic pressure and restructured many Universities worldwide. Working and having a stable job is vital for maintaining one's mental and physical health.¹¹ “Insecure employment has affected those in precarious housing situations, with rent and mortgages increasingly difficult to maintain”.^12,13 Junior Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy (MIRT) academics and early-career researchers were impacted by funding modifications, ceasing of projects and funding and inability to publish due to lack of research data.¹⁴

Academics, clinical academics, researchers and educators have faced further challenges during the pandemic within their personal and working lives. MIRT academics were expected to adjust placement patterns quickly, online curricula, reformulate research projects, design new ways of remote teaching and learning, redesign teaching spaces and resources, and offer emotional support and personal tutoring for many more students working on the frontline. Working antisocial hours, teaching online, and offering round the clock support to students became the “new normal”, leaving little personal time. A significant number of factors dividing gender roles while working from home during the pandemic have been identified in the literature, including parenting, caring responsibilities, household chores, pay gaps and expectations and leadership differences.^15,16 Most recent research suggests that the pandemic has contributed to the burnout of academics and researchers, reducing their mental and physical health.17, 18, 19

Having a job is vital for good mental and physical health.¹¹ People have faced uncertainty in terms of employment due to the implications of COVID-19. “I. employment has affected those in precarious housing situations, with rent and mortgages increasingly difficult to maintain”.^12,13 This is especially true for MIRT junior academics and early-career researchers. Research was significantly impacted with discontinuation, or significant adjustments of projects and grants, and those employed in these fields have struggled with reduced working hour contracts, inability to publish due to lack of results, stalling careers, lack of motivation, to name just a few.¹⁴

Academics, researchers, and educators have fought their own battle regarding their personal and working lives and teaching and research responsibilities. Concerns have arisen relating to the possibility of unconfirmed future funding for research, thereby leaving many researchers unsure of where they stand going forward with their careers.¹⁴ MIRT academics and researchers were expected to adjust placement patterns quickly, online curricula, reformulate research projects, design new ways of remote-learning, redesign lab spaces and resources, and offer emotional support and personal tutoring for many more students. They were often required to work antisocial hours at the expense of their families, offering maximum flexibility to students while chasing their deadlines for the new approaching academic year. While little research has been carried out to date, recent research suggests that the pandemic contributes to the burnout of academics and researchers concerning their mental and physical health.17, 18, 19 “It is crucial to recognise students and teachers' remarkable adaptation to this new form of class, where physical presence was replaced by technology, altering the student/teacher relationship considerably”.²⁰

Many factors dividing gender roles while working from home during the pandemic have been identified in the literature, including parenting, caring responsibilities, household chores, pay gaps and expectations and leadership differences.^15,16 Most recent research suggests that the pandemic has contributed to the burnout of academics and researchers, impacting their mental and physical health and capacity to work for the longer term.17, 18, 19

A small cohort of female academics was studied in Michigan. Results showed that “these women were able to balance career and family demands but only at the expense of becoming accustomed to little sleep”.²¹ Amid the pandemic, more than 1.5 billion children were out of school. Due to the closure of childcare facilities, many families had no choice but to home-school and make adjustments to facilitate remote-working for at least one, if not both, of the parents. A recent study on the effect of the pandemic on remote-working suggests that in terms of their most popular occupations by gender, men were more likely to adapt to the new work environment during the pandemic.²²

As conclusive evidence has not yet been compiled on the impact of the pandemic, much more research is required. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental and physical health of MIRT academics.