By maria del mar garcia, president of Almería Official College of Nursing and treasurer of Spanish General Nursing Council.

Mental health has long been a forgotten item in healthcare. It is the pandemic that has made the alarming mental health situation of the population in our country even more visible.

In this context, mental health nurses are needed more than ever, but for much of society and the media, they continue to be an invisible and unknown presence. On the contrary, their work is essential to the well-being of patients, as they ensure the care and treatment of symptoms, assistance in the recovery process -which can be extended over time-, and acceptance of the disease. and relationships with the immediate environment.

Nurses are the gateway for patients in any mental health unit, as we can teach them how to cope with problems, help manage emotions and gradually improve any depressive state a person may be experiencing.

And in particular, occupational nurses should be leaders in caring for people in enterprises and as health and preventative guarantors for employees, they have a fundamental role in assisting, raising awareness and providing health education. health.

leave the profession

The mental health of post-pandemic nurses is also worrying. A year ago, the College Nursing Organization conducted a macro survey which showed that 85% of nurses see their mental health being affected by the pandemic, even considering leaving the profession.

Among many other data, the results of months of wear and tear have very serious consequences for the mental health of these professionals, as a third of them (33%) admit to suffering from depression, 6 in 10 confirm to have insomnia (58.6%) and more than two thirds experienced episodes of severe anxiety (67.5%).

And what is most worrying is that the data in this study conducted in 2022 is getting worse. As of April 2022, following a study by the Autonomous Community (Navarre), mental health is affected by 83% and 46% of the population thinking of leaving the profession if they could.

Spain suffers from a chronic shortage of nurses which is jeopardizing the health and welfare system of an aging and chronically ill citizenry with growing care needs. Really, we cannot continue to persecute a profession that is essential to the health of the population and for the future sustainability of the health system, nor can we keep a number of professionals light years away from the health care needs of the profession, we cannot be very far from neighboring countries and socioeconomic level such as England or France.