Coping strategies used by migrant healthcare workers to support their mental health during COVID-19 in the United Kingdom: a qualitative analysis

Agbonmwandolor, JO, Chaloner, J, Gogoi, M, Qureshi, I, Al-Oraibi, A, Ekezie, W, Reilly, H, Wobi, F, Nellums, LB and Pareek, M (2024) Coping strategies used by migrant healthcare workers to support their mental health during COVID-19 in the United Kingdom: a qualitative analysis. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 15 (1).

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Abstract

Background: The incidence of mental illness has risen since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The number of healthcare workers (HCWs) needing mental health support has increased significantly. Objective: This secondary analysis of qualitative data explored the coping strategies of migrant HCWs living in the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our aim was to identify the coping strategies used by migrant HCWs, and how they could be explored post-pandemic as support mechanisms of an increasingly diverse workforce. Method: As part of the United Kingdom Research study into Ethnicity And COVID-19 outcomes among Healthcare workers (UK-REACH), we conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews and focus groups with clinical and non-clinical HCWs across the UK, on Microsoft Teams, from December 2020 to July 2021. We conducted a thematic analysis using Braun and Clarke’s framework to explore the lived experiences of HCWs born overseas and living in the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic. The key themes that emerged were described using Lazarus and Folkman’s transactional model of stress and coping. Results: The emerging themes include stressors (situation triggering stress), appraisal (situation acknowledged as a source of stress), emotion-focused coping (family and social support and religious beliefs), problem-focused coping (engaging in self-care, seeking and receiving professional support), and coping strategy outcomes. The participants described the short-term benefit of the coping strategies as a shift in focus from COVID-19, which reduced their anxiety and stress levels. However, the long-term impact is unknown. Conclusion: We found that some migrant HCWs struggled with their mental health and used various coping strategies during the pandemic. With an increasingly diverse healthcare workforce, it will be beneficial to explore how coping strategies (family and social support networks, religion, self-care, and professional support) could be used in the future and how occupational policies and infrastructure can be adapted to support these communities.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	UK-REACH Collaborative Group; Humans; Adaptation, Psychological; Mental Health; Qualitative Research; Social Support; Adult; Middle Aged; Health Personnel; Transients and Migrants; Female; Male; Pandemics; United Kingdom; COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; Coping Skills; COVID-19 pandemic; Healthcare workers; Trabajadores de la salud; coping strategies; estrategias de afrontamiento; mental health; migrant; migrantes; pandemia por la COVID-19; salud mental; Humans; COVID-19; Adaptation, Psychological; United Kingdom; Health Personnel; Transients and Migrants; Qualitative Research; Female; Male; Adult; SARS-CoV-2; Mental Health; Middle Aged; Social Support; Pandemics; Coping Skills; 32 Biomedical and Clinical Sciences; 5201 Applied and Developmental Psychology; 5203 Clinical and Health Psychology; 3202 Clinical Sciences; 52 Psychology; Clinical Research; Coronaviruses; Behavioral and Social Science; Infectious Diseases; Social Determinants of Health; Coronaviruses Disparities and At-Risk Populations; Emerging Infectious Diseases; Mental Health; 7.1 Individual care needs; 8.1 Organisation and delivery of services; Mental health; 3 Good Health and Well Being; Humans; COVID-19; Adaptation, Psychological; United Kingdom; Health Personnel; Transients and Migrants; Qualitative Research; Female; Male; Adult; SARS-CoV-2; Mental Health; Middle Aged; Social Support; Pandemics; Coping Skills
Subjects:	R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine
Divisions:	Public and Allied Health
Publisher:	Taylor and Francis Group
Date of acceptance:	3 October 2024
Date of first compliant Open Access:	29 August 2025
Date Deposited:	29 Aug 2025 11:44
Last Modified:	29 Aug 2025 11:45
DOI or ID number:	10.1080/20008066.2024.2415747
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/27023

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