Impact of a hospital environment and workplace stressors on professional quality of life among Canadian sonographers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This article examines the impact of COVID-19 pandemic-related workplace stressors on the professional quality of life (ProQOL) of Canadian sonographers, focusing on compassion satisfaction (CS), burnout, and secondary traumatic stress (STS). Using survey data from 618 sonographers, the study found that insufficient personal protective equipment (PPE), perceived workplace safety concerns, poor supervisor communication, and emotional exhaustion were significantly associated with lower CS and higher burnout and STS. Hospital-based sonographers, who had greater exposure to critically ill COVID-19 patients, reported worse outcomes than their non-hospital-based counterparts. The findings highlight emotional exhaustion as a key factor driving distress and suggest that systemic interventions—including improved workplace safety, compassionate leadership, mental health resources, peer support, and emotional intelligence training—may enhance sonographers' well-being and sustain quality care in high-stress healthcare environments.