A year of crisis has taken a toll on those tasked with caring for the sick and elderly. It’s almost a year since the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of COVID-19 a pandemic. Manuela Saragosa revisits three frontline health care workers who she spoke to last year, about how they have coped. Dr Ma, a geriatrician in Hong Kong plus a care home worker in Spain and Dr. Laura Hawryluck, Associate Professor of Critical Care Medicine at the University of Toronto and an ICU doctor herself. Laura tells us of the strains and physical scars of the past year. And Elena Rusconi, Professor of Psychobiology and Physiological Psychology at the University of Trento, explains the results of a survey she and colleagues conducted on care workers in Northern Italy last year, which found that almost half had symptoms of moderate-to-severe anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Remember if any of the issues in today’s edition affect you, do seek the help of a professional mental health body if not a doctor or friends and family.

Producer: Frey Lindsay

(Picture: Dr. Laura Hawryluck in her ICU equipment. Picture credit: Laura Hawryluck)