Researchers should consider how pandemic conditions may impact upon all stakeholders in a study (including participants, healthcare staff, support staff etc.) and take appropriate measures to mitigate additional burdens.

Our analysis of peer-reviewed literature from the UK and South Africa paints a bleak picture of healthcare and support staff working during the COVID-19 pandemic; warzone-like conditions with an unprecedented volume of suffering and dying all around them, a situation which was echoed around the world. As researchers themselves were excluded from intensive care units, healthcare staff were asked to take on additional responsibilities. However, helping their researcher colleagues had the potential to impact on their wellbeing and their ability to function effectively in their roles. The involvement of healthcare staff in research during pandemics needs to be considered carefully.

Related PREPARED Output:

Pushed closer to the edge – How the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to the increasing marginalisation of disabled people and their carers in the UK

Unprepared – A scoping review of the experiences of health and social care workers in South Africa during COVID-19

Battling at the frontline – The experiences of frontline health care staff in the UK during the coronavirus pandemic