The effects of the last three years of the Covid-19 pandemic are still being unearthed every single day and now a new study published in the journal International Social Work has found that social workers have experience concerning rates of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and anxiety. 

Stressors related to Covid-19 were the strongest factors associated with negative mental health outcomes. Those who experienced a higher number of pandemic-related stressors -- such as health concerns, increased caregiving responsibilities, violence in the home, family stress due to confinement, and stress associated with work-life balance -- experienced mental health problems at a higher rate compared with those who were not as impacted by pandemic-related hardships.

"Like physicians, nurses and other allied health care providers, social workers are feeling the impact of the pandemic, and it is showing up in their mental health," says lead author Ramona Alaggia, a professor at the University of Toronto's Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work (FIFSW) and the Margaret and Wallace McCain Chair in Child and Family. "As we celebrate Social Work Week in Ontario March 6 - 12 and National Social Work Month in March, it is important to recognise the stressors that affect social workers and the well-being of those working in this essential field."