The Mental Health of Frontline Chinese Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Thematic Analysis of Their Dreams

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic caused substantial stress to healthcare workers (HCW) worldwide. This study examined the mental health of frontline Chinese HCW through their dream experience during the COVID-19 pandemic and their subjective perception of reported dreams. Using semistructured interviews, we evaluated 45 dreams from 28 HCW from various hospital departments. Six themes emerged after a thematic analysis of these dreams: warning, escape, alienation of HCW, gender inequality, archetypal-mythological dreams, and negative emotions. The findings indicate a close relationship between the participants' mental health state and their dreams, which contributes a new insight into understanding the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on frontline HCW. It allows us to provide them with better psychological support in a global public health crisis. In the conclusion to this article, we discuss future research directions for the dreams of frontline HCW.