Insomnia and job stressors among healthcare workers who served COVID-19 patients in Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND: The global outbreak of COVID-19 has created unprecedented havoc among health care workers, resulting in significant psychological strains like insomnia. This study aimed to analyze insomnia prevalence and job stressors among Bangladeshi health care workers in COVID-19 units. METHODOLOGY: We conducted this cross-sectional study to assess insomnia severity from January to March 2021 among 454 health care workers working in multiple hospitals in Dhaka city with active COVID-dedicated units. We selected 25 hospitals conveniently. We used a structured questionnaire for face-to-face interviews containing sociodemographic variables and job stressors. The severity of insomnia was measured by the Insomnia Severity Scale (ISS). The scale has seven items to evaluate the rate of insomnia, which was categorized as the absence of Insomnia (0-7); sub-threshold Insomnia (8-14); moderate clinical Insomnia (15-21); and severe clinical Insomnia (22-28). To identify clinical insomnia, a cut-off value of 15 was decided primarily. A cut-off score of 15 was initially proposed for identifying clinical insomnia. We performed a chi-square test and adjusted logistic regression to explore the association of different independent variables with clinically significant insomnia using the software SPSS version 25.0. RESULTS: 61.5% of our study participants were females. 44.9% were doctors, 33.9% were nurses, and 21.1% were other health care workers. Insomnia was more dominant among doctors and nurses (16.2% and 13.6%, respectively) than others (4.2%). We found clinically significant insomnia was associated with several job stressors (p < 0.05). In binary logistic regression, having sick leave (OR = 0.248, 95% CI = 0.116, 0.532) and being entitled to risk allowance (OR = 0.367, 95% CI = 0.124.1.081) showed lower odds of developing Insomnia. Previously diagnosed with COVID-19-positive health care workers had an OR of 2.596 (95% CI = 1.248, 5.399), pointing at negative experiences influencing insomnia. In addition, we observed that any training on risk and hazard increased the chances of suffering from Insomnia (OR = 1.923, 95% CI = 0.934, 3.958). CONCLUSION: It is evident from the findings that the volatile existence and ambiguity of COVID-19 have induced significant adverse psychological effects and subsequently directed our HCWs toward disturbed sleep and insomnia. The study recommends the imperativeness to formulate and implement collaborative interventions to help HCWs cope with this crisis and mitigate the mental stresses they experience during the pandemic.

Oral health knowledge, practice, and oral health status among rohingya refugees in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh: A cross-sectional study.

Oral health is a critical component of human health but is sometimes forgotten, particularly during humanitarian crises. This research aimed to ascertain the state of oral health among Rohingya refugees living in one of the largest refugee camps and evaluate their knowledge and practice of oral health. A multicenter cross-sectional survey was conducted among 477 participants from July to September 2021 using a structured questionnaire. There were 34 Rohingya camps and out of those 14 camps were accessible for data collection. The study participants were between 18-82 years residing in the refugee camps under Cox's Bazar. The majority of participants (53.88%) were female and between the ages of 25 and 45. Around 46.12% of respondents did not have basic oral health knowledge, while 53.67% were in need of dental care. Nearly half of the participants demonstrated poor oral health practices. Participants' age and educational level were positively associated with oral health knowledge (p = 0.02 and p<0.001). Furthermore, the knowledge level was positively associated with oral health practice (p = .025). Participants with a history of teeth pain and discomfort in the last 12 months were ten times more likely to seek treatment (OR = 9.93, CI: 5.591-17.64). The study indicated a growing demand for dental care among Rohingya refugees staying in Bangladesh. To reduce the severity of oral health issues, use of minimally invasive restorative procedures can be suggested in camps. New oral health promotion campaigns should be emphasized and proper education, ideally in their original language, can be beneficial.