The emotional state of young people in northern Spain after one year and a half of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background and objectives: : Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the young population has been suffering from an accumulation of psychological symptoms in northern Spain. The main objectives of this study were (1) to assess whether psychological symptoms persisted after one year and a half of the COVID-19 pandemic in northern Spain sample of young people, and (2) to analyze whether pandemic-specific variables (having a chronic illness, living with a person who has a chronic illness, having been infected with COVID-19, having a close person who has died or believing that people are respecting the measures imposed) are related to psychological symptomatology. Methods: : Symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression were measured using the Depression and Stress Anxiety Scale-21 (DASS-21). An ad hoc online questionnaire was used to collect socio-demographical information related to chronic illnesses of the participants, living with a chronically ill person, contact with a person diagnosed with COVID-19, having people close to them who have died of COVID-19, and their perception of whether or not people respect the health measures. Results: : Young people have suffered higher stress, anxiety, and depression levels than at the beginning of the pandemic. Conclusions: : The present study highlights the importance of addressing young people's mental health, and ensure that future adults emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic in a psychologically strong state.

Prevalence of Burnout among Teachers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Meta-Analysis.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many studies have found that there has been a lot of teacher overload. One of the additional burdens has been that they have had to teach online. In addition, when they returned to face-to-face classes, they had to follow all the hygiene rules so that the COVID-19 virus would not spread. It is therefore not surprising that, during this pandemic period, high levels of psychological symptoms have been reported among teachers. Among this symptomatology, burnout has been very frequent among teachers. Therefore, the aim of this study is to conduct a meta-analysis to determine the overall prevalence of burnout among teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic. For this purpose, a search was conducted for cross-sectional studies listed in PubMed from 1 December 2019 to 14 February 2022 that reported on the prevalence of burnout among teachers. A total of nine studies from eight different countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North and South America, were included in this study. The pooled prevalence of burnout among teachers was 52% (95% CI 33-71%), which is higher than burnout rates reported for health professionals. There was significant heterogeneity between studies (I2 = 99%, p-value < 0.001), and the prevalence of burnout was higher in women and school teachers (compared to university educators), and lower in American studies. This meta-analysis concludes that teachers worldwide experienced a high rate of burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic. This has implications not only for the teachers themselves, but also for the quality of the education they were able to provide. This education has an influence on the student population. The possible long-term effects are yet to be determined.

PTSD (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder) in Teachers: A Mini Meta-Analysis during COVID-19.

BACKGROUND: Since March 2020, when the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 pandemic, in order to stop the spread of the virus, unprecedented measures were taken worldwide. One of the most important measures was the closure of schools and educational centers around the world in 2020, and very extreme health protocols have been in place in educational centers since they were reopened. From early childhood education to universities, teachers first had to adapt in a short period time to online classes and then continuously readapt to new protocols according to the pandemic situation. This academic environment, in addition to the pandemic situation itself, has favored the emergence of mental disorders such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Medline via PubMed and other databases were searched for studies on the prevalence of PTSD in teachers from 1 December 2019 to 1 October 2022. A total of five studies were included in this review. Our results show a prevalence of PTSD of 11% reported by teachers. No subgroups nor meta-regression analyses were performed due to the insufficient number of studies available. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that teachers are suffering from PTSD, so it is important to carry out more studies worldwide. Similarly, measures to improve the mental health and well-being of teachers during the pandemic and post-pandemic periods are needed.

The emotional state of young people in northern Spain after one year and a half of the COVID-19 pandemic

Background and objectives : Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the young population has been suffering from an accumulation of psychological symptoms in northern Spain. The main objectives of this study were (1) to assess whether psychological symptoms persisted after one year and a half of the COVID-19 pandemic in northern Spain sample of young people, and (2) to analyze whether pandemic-specific variables (having a chronic illness, living with a person who has a chronic illness, having been infected with COVID-19, having a close person who has died or believing that people are respecting the measures imposed) are related to psychological symptomatology. Methods : Symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression were measured using the Depression and Stress Anxiety Scale-21 (DASS-21). An ad hoc online questionnaire was used to collect socio-demographical information related to chronic illnesses of the participants, living with a chronically ill person, contact with a person diagnosed with COVID-19, having people close to them who have died of COVID-19, and their perception of whether or not people respect the health measures. Results : Young people have suffered higher stress, anxiety, and depression levels than at the beginning of the pandemic. Conclusions : The present study highlights the importance of addressing young people's mental health, and ensure that future adults emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic in a psychologically strong state.

The well-being of children in a full lockdown and partial lockdown situation: a comparative perspective

From 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic changed the world as we knew it. In the interest of stopping the spread of the pandemic, lockdown periods and social distancing measures were established in many countries at the beginning of that year and these restrictions continued for the following months and years. Moreover, schools from all over the world closed their doors. In this context, the objective of this research was to compare the well-being of children in Spain during full lockdown and partial lockdown periods, as measured by physical, emotional, social, and academic indicators. The 'Well-being of Children in Lockdown' (WCL) scale (Berasategi et al. 2020) was used to measure the well-being of children using these parameters. The results revealed statistically significant differences in the general well-being of children and also in terms of emotions, addictions and playful and creative activities, with greater levels of well-being in these domains being evident in the full lockdown period compared with the partial lockdown period. In contrast, during the partial lockdown period, levels of physical and academic well-being were higher in comparison with those reported during the full lockdown phase. Finally, some theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Social Professionals in the Face of the Health Crisis

Due to the crisis generated by COVID-19 at a global level, many professionals are working under harsh conditions, and the Basque Country is no exception. On 14 March 2020, the head of the government decreed a state of alarm at the state level, which forced us all to be confined to our homes. This situation directly affected the profession of social educator. In fact, these professionals work with the most vulnerable groups, so working on the front line is mandated, even if this results in a significant risk. The situation of the groups in residential resources cannot be easy due to the stress produced by living together and being locked up, and this directly affects the educators who necessarily work in it. However, the over-exertion that all of this requires, which is a risk, has not been detected nor recognized at the social level. For this reason, the objective of this investigation is to measure the stress of social educators of advanced age who work in residential resources in different zones of the Basque Country (northern Spain). Sixty-seven social educators participated in the case study. Qualitative and quantitative methods were combined for data collection. This questionnaire was conducted through the Google Forms platform. The quantitative data collected through the questionnaire were analyzed by descriptive analysis and frequency contrasts were performed through the SPSS V25 program. We can conclude that it is necessary to take into account the difficulties of this sector and the professionals both at the governmental and social levels. Future research should include responses from both groups and workers in order to guarantee adequate inclusion.

Prevalence of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in University Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Meta-Analysis Attending SDG 3 and 4 of the 2030 Agenda

Background: Most universities around the world have been heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, as declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) in March 2020. Many students were isolated at home and underwent a forced transition from face-to-face learning to e-learning, at least in the first few months. The subsequent months and years were typically characterised by a slow return to normal learning under COVID-19 protocols and restrictions. A potential consequence of the lockdowns, social restrictions and changes to learning is the development of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) in university students, affecting their health and well-being (SDG3) and quality of education (SDG4). Materials and Methods: Medline was searched through PubMed for studies on the prevalence of PTSD in university students from 1 December 2019 to 31 December 2021. The pooled prevalence of PTSD was calculated with random-effects models. Results: A total of six studies were included, across which the prevalence of PTSD among university students was 23%. Meta-regression showed that the prevalence of PTSD was significantly higher with older age, but independent of the percentage of women in a study or its methodological quality. Conclusions: Our results suggest that students suffer from PTSD at a moderate rate. Measures are needed to address the mental health issues of university students that have arisen during COVID-19 all around the world.

Drawing the COVID-19 pandemic: how do children incorporate the health crisis and its consequences into their everyday thinking?

OBJECTIVE: The general objective of this research was to explore how children understand and represent COVID-19 health crisis in their everyday thinking. DESIGN: This research is based on a qualitative interpretive research methodology that uses 6-12 years children's drawings from San Sebastian (Basque Country, northern of Spain) to collect data. This technique allows children to visualize how they face this situation through a tool that promotes expression of their feelings and representations. RESULTS: A total of 345 drawings were collected, and 949 elements related to the different coded categories were coded. The themes that have arisen were related to symbols of the pandemic (n = 307, 32.34%), emotions (n = 290, 30.55%), actions carried out (n = 258, 27.18%) and socialization (n = 94, 9.90%). No differences by age-range were found. CONCLUSIONS: Children have a realistic representation of the COVID-19 virus and its consequences, which closely resembles the representation shown by the media and society. The children show a good understanding of the new measures and social rules associated with the pandemic. They are also very aware of the need to support their emotions by different spheres (family, educational and social context). Alternative play activities and art-based education must be promoted, avoiding the abuse of screens to reinforce their well-being.

Factors Influencing Compliance with COVID-19 Health Measures: A Spanish Study to Improve Adherence Campaigns.

Since the spread of the COVID-19 virus was declared a pandemic, different measures have been taken to control it, including frequent hand-washing, the use of face masks and social distancing. Given the importance of these measures, the present study aims to assess compliance with them in a Spanish sample of 722 people aged between 18 and 65 years. It also aims to determine which factors influence the levels of compliance observed. Participants complied more with the rules in the public spaces. The younger group had lower levels of compliance than the older group. No differences were found in accordance with sex. It was shown that overall, the agents that most influenced compliance were family, testimonials and friends and fines. Some differences were observed in relation to age, and significant sex differences were found in some of these factors, with women scoring higher than men. The results are discussed in terms of their usefulness for the design of information campaigns that seek to foster a greater degree of engagement by the entire population and, ultimately, greater control of the pandemic, in addition to serving as a basis for the early prevention of the spread of new viruses in the future.

Emotional State of Mexican University Students in the COVID-19 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Since the WHO declared the COVID-19 crisis a pandemic in March 2020, the young population is suffering from a range of psychological symptoms. The present study measured symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression in university students of Saltillo, Mexico, using the Depression and Anxiety Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21). METHODS: The DASS-21 scale and an ad hoc questionnaire were used to collect sociodemographic information. RESULTS: The results show that the students who participated in this study suffer from high levels of stress, anxiety and depression. In terms of sociodemographic variables, women, people suffering from a chronic disease and people living with a chronic disease had the highest levels of stress, anxiety and depression, and people who live with a chronically ill person, people who have had the COVID-19 disease and those who have had someone close to them fall sick have had more stress, anxiety and depression than the rest. Another finding of the present study is that university students who believe that others comply with COVID-19 safety measures have significantly lower anxiety and depression than those who believe that others do not comply. CONCLUSIONS: It is concluded that university students are a psychologically vulnerable group in the face of the pandemic.

Meta-Analysis of Prevalence of Depression in Dental Students during COVID-19 Pandemic.

Background and Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic has a negative impact on the mental health of the population in general, and in college students in particular. Dental students have seen their teaching altered and their clinical practice reduced. This study was aimed at conducting a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies reporting levels of depression among dental students during the COVID-19 and estimating the pooled prevalence of depression. Materials and Methods: Medline via PubMed and other databases were searched for studies on the prevalence of depression in dental undergraduates, published from 1 December 2019 to 1 September 2021. The pooled proportions of depression were calculated with random effects models. Results: We identified 13 studies from 9 countries. The pooled prevalence of depression in dental students was 37% (95% CI: 26-49%) with no variation due to gender, response rate or methodological quality. We only found a significantly higher prevalence of depression in studies from Asia compared to Europe and America. Conclusions: Our results suggest that dental students are suffering from higher levels of depression compared with the general population or other college students during the COVID-19 pandemic, with differences across regions. Measures to improve mental health and wellbeing of dental students during the pandemic are needed.

Prevalence of Anxiety in Dental Students during the COVID-19 Outbreak: A Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the psychological state of university students has been a cause for concern. In particular, odontology students have experienced symptoms of anxiety due to the closure of universities and the suspension of clinical training. METHODS: Medline via PubMed was searched for studies on the prevalence of anxiety in dental undergraduates, published from 1 December 2019 to 1 August 2021. RESULTS: A total of fifteen studies were included in this review. Our results show a prevalence of anxiety of 35% reported by dental students, which was independent of gender, response rate or methodological quality. The only significant finding was a lower prevalence of anxiety in studies located in Europe compared to those located in other continents. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest dental students are experiencing significant levels of anxiety during this COVID-19 pandemic and that there seem to be differences between students from different regions of the world. Therefore, it is important to help dental students psychologically as the pandemic situation continues.

Well-Being of Adolescents in De-Escalation Situation: Physical, Emotional, Social, and Academic Impact.

The Covid-19 pandemic has changed the world we knew in recent months. In the interest of maintaining social distance, lockdown periods have been established and schools in many countries have closed their doors. In this context, the objective of this research was to analyze the well-being of adolescents in Spain after lock-down and during the de-escalation process in a holistic way; taking into account their indicators on physical, emotional, social, and academic levels. The "Well-being of Children in Lockdown" (WCL) scale was used to measure the well-being of adolescents using these same parameters. The results point out that the general well-being of adolescents in the pandemic situation was situated at an intermediate level. Taking into account the different aspects measured within the general well-being, the domains that obtained the lowest scores were the domains of addictions and playful and creative activities. Intermediate scores were also obtained in the physical activity, emotional and academic domains, with the routine and academic domains having the highest scores. Boys and younger adolescents are those who show higher scores in the general well-being. Moreover, correlations appear between academic task stress and emotions, playful and creative activities, addictions, physical activity, routine, academic and overall well-being.

Prevalence of Anxiety, Depression, and Stress among Teachers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Rapid Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers have been accumulating adverse psychological symptoms due to the closure of educational centers and the need to adapt to different teaching modalities. METHODS: Medline and PubMed were searched for studies on the prevalence of depression, anxiety, stress, and burn-out in teachers, published from 1 December 2019 to 15 June 2021. RESULTS: In total, eight studies were included in this study. The results show that teachers report levels of anxiety (17%), depression (19%), and stress (30%). In Asia, there has been more anxiety compared to other continents. Overall, anxiety has been higher among teachers in schools compared to universities. However, stress levels have been higher among teachers in universities compared to schools. Statistically, there were no significant differences regarding gender and age in any of the symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that teachers at different educational levels are experiencing adverse psychological symptomatology during the COVID-19 pandemic, and that anxiety levels vary between different countries. However, more international studies are needed to fully understand the impact of the pandemic on teachers' mental health.

Autogenic Training Improves the Subjective Perception of Physical and Psychological Health and of Interpersonal Relational Abilities: An Electronic Field Survey During the COVID-19 Crisis in Spain.

Currently, humanity is facing one of the most critical situations of this century, the COVID-19. The adverse effects of the pandemic on the mental health of the population are well known. Fear of illness, confinement, lack of financial resources, or poor social support can influence people's mental state. Despite these risks, several psychological resources may help address this situation. The present study investigated the effectiveness of a self-relaxation techniques known as autogenic training. Autogenic training is a well-known method in Europe for the treatment of anxiety and stress disorders. The practice of autogenic training is also reported to improve neurovegetative and immune regulation. This study focuses on describing how autogenic training is helping its practitioners to cope with the pandemic. Specifically, they report strong beneficial effects on their physical, psychological, and relational health. In total, 75 autogenic training practitioners (41 women), age 22-71, participated in the survey. An ad-hoc questionnaire was developed to collect information on sociodemographic variables, health status during the pandemic, characteristics of their AT practice, and response to the pandemic as outcome variables. The questionnaire was distributed through Google Forms in the first week of September 2020. The results show that there was an increase in the practice of autogenic therapy during the pandemic, especially among women. In addition, the majority of participants (88%) remained healthy during the pandemic. Furthermore, the results show that autogenic training is very useful for physical and psychological health and for a better understanding of others. Therefore, the practice of autogenic training is recommended to people who live moments of anxiety, are afraid of illness, or feel that they have to improve the quality of relationships with others.

Reopening of Schools in the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Quality of Life of Teachers While Coping with This New Challenge in the North of Spain.

BACKGROUND: This study aims to analyze how teachers perceived their quality of life when coping with the reopening of schools after their closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: This study was carried out with a total sample of 1633 teachers from the Department of Education of the Basque Autonomous Community (Northern Spain), all of the professionals working in different educational centers, from preschool education to university studies, with the average age of 42.02 years (SD = 10.40). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: For this purpose, the Spanish version of the WHOQOL-BREF was used. RESULTS: The highest values of perceived quality of life were found in the dimension of psychological health, followed by the dimension of physical health, the social relations dimension, and finally, the environmental dimensions. The results also revealed significant differences depending on gender, age, having a chronic illness, or living with someone who has a chronic illness, employment security, and educational sector. CONCLUSION: The study shows that it is important to attend to teachers' health and quality of life, especially older teachers, those with a chronic illness, caregivers, those with job insecurity, and those who teach in preschool education.

Psychological impact of COVID-19 on a sample of Spanish health professionals.

INTRODUCTION: After the outbreak of the COVID-19 was considered a global pandemic in March 2020, the state of alarm was declared in Spain. In this situation, health professionals are experiencing high levels of stress due to the overload of work the pandemic is generating and the conditions in which they are working. The aim of this study was to evaluate the factors that can destabilize the mental health of these professionals in our context. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The sample was composed of 421 health professionals. The data were gathered by an online questionnaire sent to them by e-mail. The DASS-21 was used to assess anxiety, stress and depression, and the EAI to measure sleep difficulties. In addition, other descriptive variables that could be related to psychological symptomatology were collected from the sample. RESULTS: The results show that the COVID-19 pandemic has generated symptoms of stress, anxiety, depression and insomnia among health workers, with higher levels among women and older professionals. Some factors such as having been in contact with the virus or fear at work, triggered greater symptomatology. CONCLUSIONS: In this critical situation, professionals are in the front line and therefore, are directly exposed to certain risks and stressors. This contributes to the development of diverse psychological symptoms. Consequently, it is recommended to offer them psychological help in order to reduce the emotional impact of the COVID-19, and thus, to ensure not only the mental health of our health professionals, but also the adequate care they provide.

Teacher stress, anxiety and depression at the beginning of the academic year during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Faced with the situation of COVID-19, teachers are dealing with new measures, insecurity and a lack of clear guidelines. The aim of this study is to analyse the levels of stress, anxiety and depression of teachers in the north of Spain. METHODS: This study was conducted with 1633 teachers from the Department of Education of the Basque Autonomous Community (BAC) and Navarre, all of whom are professionals working in various educational centres, from nursery education to university studies, with an average age of 42 years (M = 42.02; s.d. = 10.40). The Spanish version of the Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale-21 was used. RESULTS: The results show that a high percentage of teachers have symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression. Women show significantly more symptoms of stress and anxiety than men, those who have children have more depressive symptoms than those who do not, and people with chronic pathology or those who live with others with chronic pathology have more stress, anxiety and depression. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates the importance of attending to the mental health of teachers, particularly women, those who have children, and those who have a chronic pathology or a family member with a chronic pathology.

Coping with COVID-19: social representations underlying blaming processes and fear.

Objective. This study examines how people socially represent the COVID-19 pandemic in the early stage of the health crisis in Europe. Specifically, this research analyses the days before and immediately after the declaration of the state of emergency in Spain, which resulted in the entire population being placed in lockdown. Design. For this purpose, we used the Grid Elaboration Method for free association elicited by the word "coronavirus". This exercise was completed by 1037 people from Spain. Main Outcome Measures. Responses were analysed using Iramuteq software for lexical analysis. Results. Before the state of emergency and lockdown, there was a repeat of many of the emotional and cognitive patterns seen in previous pandemics such us upward and downward blaming or feelings of anger and emotional fatigue. However, outward blaming patterns towards peers also emerged. Moreover, in the period following lockdown, we noted the emergence of new representations and emotions such as paralyzing distrust or resilience. Similarity analysis revealed that the "fear of pandemic" hides a wide variety of emotions. Conclusion. Understanding the blaming and fear processes that are linked to the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain offers us practical implications for coping with the challenge of this new crisis.

Prevalence of anxiety in health care professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic: A rapid systematic review (on published articles in Medline) with meta-analysis.

During the COVID-19, healthcare workers are exposed to a higher risk of mental health problems, especially anxiety symptoms. The current work aims at contributing to an update of anxiety prevalence in this population by conducting a rapid systematic review and meta-analysis. Medline and Pubmed were searched for studies on the prevalence of anxiety in health care workers published from December 1, 2019 to September 15, 2020. In total, 71 studies were included in this study. The pooled prevalence of anxiety in healthcare workers was 25% (95% CI: 21%-29%), 27% in nurses (95% CI: 20%-34%), 17% in medical doctors (95% CI: 12%-22%) and 43% in frontline healthcare workers (95% CI: 25%-62%). Our results suggest that healthcare workers are experiencing significant levels of anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially those on the frontline and nurses. However, international longitudinal studies are needed to fully understand the impact of the pandemic on healthcare workers' mental health, especially those working at the frontline.