Abstract
The number of households headed by single mothers is increasing rapidly both in developing and developed countries. South Africa is no exception to this phenomenon due to its colonial and apartheid history, during which many women were subject to discrimination based on their gender both in the workplace and the communities in which they live. Many households that are headed by single mothers are vulnerable to developing psychosocial challenges like depression, anxiety and financial struggles. For those who worked in the health sector during the COVID-19 pandemic, the risks and challenges experienced as single mothers were devastating as they were more prone to mental health problems. This concern led to the investigation of the psychosocial experiences and coping strategies of single mothers who work in the health sector in Gauteng. The study adopted the qualitative approach to interview ten single mothers who were working as healthcare professionals. The snowball sampling technique was used to choose the participants, together with the use of semi-structured interviews to collect the data. These interviews were subsequently subjected to a thorough thematic analysis.
The biopsychosocial model was beneficial for this study as it increased our understanding of how single mothers who worked in high-risk health environments had coped as frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic and assisted in answering the research questions. The biopsychosocial model helped to broaden our perspective on the psychological and social issues that single mothers face and to understand their coping strategies.
The findings from this study show that single mothers who are working as healthcare professionals struggle to maintain and balance their work and home responsibilities. This is due to the different roles and responsibilities that they have to bear the brunt of without the help of a spouse or partner. Furthermore, this makes them vulnerable to different psychological and social stresses both in their work and home environments. The study recommends the need for social workers to be more visible, relevant and at the forefront of providing psychosocial services to single mothers working as health professionals. There is a need for policy to change in order to accommodate the psychosocial needs of single mothers working as healthcare professionals.