Mental health evaluation for Sabah-bound frontliners
November 16, 2020 @ 10:00am
KUALA LUMPUR: Healthcare workers on the shortlist for deployment to Sabah will be vetted for their suitability to serve as frontliners in disaster zones.
Kuala Lumpur Hospital Psychiatry and Mental Health Department head Dr Salina Abdul Aziz said a pre-deployment assessment of physical and mental health would be carried out to ensure that those sent to disaster zones could cope with their job.
"This is not a medical check-up. We want to see whether they are suitable to be sent to a disaster area. We want to know if they have any illnesses.
"We don't want to send someone who is depressed to Sabah because it will cause a lot of problems such as social issues.
"We also need to gauge whether they are team players. If they are problematic here or missing in action, there would be little point in sending them there."
She said the assessments would be done after the pre-deployment briefing, which would give those involved an insight into what to expect upon arrival.
This, she said, was also to prevent healthcare workers from getting "the shock of their lives".
Dr Salina said those who scored high for depression, stress or anxiety in the questionnaires would be reassessed on their suitability to work.
Dr Salina Abdul Aziz
"As scores may not be reliable, the interview is needed
"From that, we will be able to tell whether they are well enough for a deployment in Sabah."
She added that all hospitals had Mental Health Psychosocial Support Services (MHPSS), which comprised not just psychiatrists, but teams of medical officers, experts, counsellors and psychologists.
Dr Salina said Covid-19 mental health kits were prepared to help health workers recognise the symptoms and reach out for help.
On rates, ratios or estimates of those suffering from depression and burnout, Dr Salina said the ministry was focused on preempting the problem.
"One thing MHPSS personnel do is they visit and talk to those working in the Covid-19 wards at random. If they find anyone looking down or depressed, they strike up a conversation and try to gauge what their problems are, whether the stress is affecting their sleep or morale."
She said even Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah had said he and his team at the ministry faced intense stress and pressure to the extent of not being able to sleep.
"Our (Health Ministry's) psychiatric and mental health services division presented him with a bouquet and a poem on hope and resilience titled Kita Jaga Kita, Kita Jaga Tan Sri.
"He received 1,000 plus positive messages on Facebook, saying he was on the right path and everyone is backing him. This is what psychosocial support is about, to make the person feel he is doing right."
Asked if frontliners had displayed signs of depression, Dr Salina said no cases had been reported so far.
"On the surface, things appear good, but we have been stretched to the maximum in Sabah. At the same time, we are also doing our best to ensure that healthcare workers are getting the help they need and understand that they are not alone.
"When you understand that, it is easier to survive. You can go through a lot of adversity and you have people to help and support you."
On the longer hours and overstretched staff, she said in Sabah, for instance, the manpower had been bolstered to ensure that stress and anxiety levels of health personnel were mitigated.
While healthcare workers were used to working in shifts, the pandemic had caused their working hours to be extended.
The ministry had earlier widened the MHPSS coverage for Sabah residents via its Psychosocial Helpline.
Dr Noor Hisham had said that the helpline (088-338088) was to assist Sabahans and the state's frontliners who were in need of support, especially during crisis situations.
Dr Salina said more investment was needed for the mental health of frontliners and the public.
"What we need is more investment in teleconferencing facilities. The Internet services we have need to be upgraded. With these, we can give counselling to patients and medical workers on the field, especially in Sabah, where the main and rural hospitals are far apart and understaffed," she said.