CONSUMPTION OF PSYCHOTROPIC SUBSTANCES AMONG HEALTHCARE PERSONNEL IN THE INTENSIVE CARE UNIT
Keywords:
Psychotropic; Health personnel; Nursing and medical students; Substance use; Intensive Care UnitAbstract
DOI: https://doi.org/10.46296/gt.v9i17.0359
Abstract
Introduction: Psychotropic substances affect normal brain function and cause changes in mood, perception, thought, feelings, and behavior. Students and healthcare professionals are prone to substance use due to their access to medications and the stress they face. Objective: To analyze the prevalence of psychotropic substance use among healthcare personnel in the Intensive Care Unit. Methodology: This was a documentary, systematic review study. The study population consisted of 111 articles obtained from the Redalyc, Scielo, PubMed, Dialnet, and ScienceDirect databases. The search terms were healthcare professionals, critical care, and substance use, combined with the Boolean operators AND and OR, and the search was conducted in three languages: Spanish, English, and Portuguese. The sample comprised 33 articles selected based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data collection was performed in a Word document, and the results are presented in narrative form to address the study objectives. Results: Studies on psychotropic substance use among intensive care healthcare personnel are scarce; however, high alcohol and tobacco consumption is evident among nursing and medical students and other healthcare professionals. To a lesser extent, there is evidence of psychostimulant and other medication use. Conclusion: Students and healthcare professionals consume various substances due to stress, emotional exhaustion, and work overload; however, our search found limited studies related to the consumption of psychotropic substances among ICU staff.
Keywords: Psychotropic; Health personnel; Nursing and medical students; Substance use; Intensive Care Unit.
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