A follow-up study of mental health status of medical staff after caring for SARS patients / 解放军医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To study the mental health status of medical staffs who had worked under strong stress in caring patients during SARS epidemic. Method 620 medical workers in Xiaotangshan Hospital of PLA were subjected to SCL-90 scale evaluation. The results were compared with Chinese norm. Results It was shown that the factor score of SCL-90, except psychoticism factor, were relatively higher than that of Chinese norm, and there was significant difference between them and that of Chinese norm. There was also significant difference among the five scores of every factor except psychoticism. Every factor score on the five phases were dynamic, the scores of anxiety and phobia were reduced gradually, but the scores of somatization, obsessive-compulsive, depression, paranoia were increased and then reduced, and the score of interpersonal sensitivity was reduced and then increased. During at the early three time intervals of work the score of hostility didn't show remarkable change, but scores were higher than before during the fourth and fifth time intervals. It indicated that the mental health status of medical staff in Xiaotangshan Hospital of PLA had become worse than that of Chinese norm after working under stress. Conclusion The symptom of anxiety, phobia, obsession, somatization were comparatively prominent. The results suggested that strong stress of work in the SARS wards could strongly influence the mental health of medical staffs.