Depressive disorders among physician parents in times of COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction: Studies have shown that physicians manifest a clear duty to work. For parents, reconciling work with parenthood is not easy and can even lead to depression. Objective(s): To determine the prevalence and the factors for depression in Tunisian physician parents. Method(s): This was a descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study of 93 Tunisian physician parents, conducted on google drive in March 2021, including a questionnaire containing the parents' personal and professional data and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Result(s): In our study, the sex ratio (M/F) was 0.05. The average age was 34.43 years old. Almost three-quarters of doctors (71.3%) were providing on duty services in the hospital while 69% were providing at least one call per month in COVID units. The average BDI score was 6.16. According to the BDI score, 60.9% of participants had depression. The BDI score was correlated with several types of dissatisfaction: dissatisfaction with the relationship with his child (p = 0.002), time devoted to the partner (0.001), time devoted to the child (p = 0.004), child's educational style (p <0.001), time spent on leisure or personal activities (p <0.001), child's academic performance (p = 0.001) and child's behavior (p <0.001). Furthermore, the BDI score was associated with postponing having a child for career reasons (p = 0.038) and thinking that his career is slowed down by parenthood (p <0.001). Conclusion(s): Depression's rate among physician parents appears to be significant. It's associated with a feeling of guilt and dissatisfaction, hence the necessity of an early detection and management.

Assessement of burnout among high school teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Sfax, Tunisia

Introduction: Facing educational difficulties related to COVID-19, some teachers can no longer adapt, making them potential candidates for burnout. Objective(s): We aimed to assess burnout among high school teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic and to determine its prevalence and factors associated with it. Method(s): We conducted a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study, carried out on google drive in May 2021, and relating to 97 Tunisian junior and secondary school teachers from the Sfax region. Burnout was evaluated by the Burnout Measure Short version (BMS-10). Result(s): The sex-ratio (M/F) of our population was 0.32 and the average age was 44.23 +/- 7.81 years old. The labor load was low, medium and high in respectively 1.4%, 57.6% and 41% of cases. Almost a third of participants (30.6%) reported a low satisfaction with working conditions. The average BMS score was 40.19 +/- 13.98. According to the BMS scores, 36.1% of teachers had a very low to a low degree of burnout, 23.6% had burnout while 40.3% had a high to very high degree of exposure to burnout. Furthermore, the BMS score was associated with the female gender (p=0.002), sleep disturbances (p<0.001), suicidal thoughts (p<0.001) and with a medium to a high labor load (p=0.045). Conclusion(s): In this study, Tunisian high school teachers in times of COVID-19 reported a high burnout rate. Thus, the protection of this vulnerable population must be an important component of public health measures.

Perceived stress among physician parents during COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction: Stress among physician parents is still poorly studied, especially during the SARS-COV-2 pandemic. Objective(s): To describe the stress of being both a doctor and a parent during COVID-19 epidemic. Method(s): It was a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study, carried out on google drive in March 2021, and relating to 93 Tunisian medical parents. We used a questionnaire containing the parents' personal and professional data as well as the perceived stress scale (PSS10). Result(s): The majority of parents (94.7%) were women. The average age was 34.43 years old. The average age of marriage was 29.6 years for men and 25.4 years for women. The majority of parents (89.4%) had one or two children and 70.2% were satisfied with their relationship with their children. On another side, 71.3% of doctors had to provide on duty services in the hospital, with 44.1% providing 3-4 on-calls per month, while 69% were providing on duty services in the COVID units. The average PSS score was 22.6. The distribution of scores indicated medium and high stress level in respectively 84.9% and 14% of parents. Furthermore, the PSS score was negatively correlated with the marriage age (p=0.046, r=-0.2). On the other hand, no association was observed with the children number nor with the satisfaction of the relationship with his child. Conclusion(s): It follows from our study that stress among physician parents is at a fairlyhighlevel. Managing this stress during a pandemic is not easy and requires the activation of several defense mechanisms.

Depressive disorders among Tunisian high school teachers in the face of COVID-19

Introduction: The constraints linked to COVID-19 may reduce resilience and intensify depressive feelings especially in vulnerable populations such as teachers. Objective(s): To understand the psychological distress in terms of depression of the COVID-19 pandemic among secondary school teachers in Sfax, Tunisia and to determine the correlated factors. Method(s): This was a descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study of 97 medium and high school teachers from Sfax, Tunisia. The study was conducted on google drive in May 2021, including an information sheet and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)-9 to assess depression. Result(s): In our study, the sex-ratio (M/F) was 0.32 and the average age was 44.23 years old. The median professional seniority was 16 years (minimum=1, maximum=37). Suicidal thoughts were described by 10.4% of teachers while 54.2% reported the presence of sleep disturbances since the onset of the pandemic. The median PHQ-9 score was 8 (Q1=4, Q3=15). The distribution of scores indicated that 59.7% of participants had no to mild symptoms of depression while 40.3% had moderate to severe depression. Furthermore, the presence of depression was associated with an age <= 40 years old (p=0.037), a professional seniority <= 20 years (p=0.035), the female gender (p=0.005), the presence of sleep disturbances (p<0.001) as well as with suicidal thoughts (p=0.006). Conclusion(s): It seems that COVID-19 health situation in education have led to the emergence of a teacher overexertion and a depth adaptation to the new environment demands. Thus, clinical attention to the depression level of the teachers is certainly warranted.

The psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on secondary school teachers in Sfax, Tunisia : anxiety disorders

Introduction: During the COVID-19 pandemic time, teachers have to adapt to many changes that could potentially make them more vulnerable to psychological distress. Objective(s): To determine the prevalence and the factors for anxiety during the COVID-19 epidemic among the high school teachers in Sfax, Tunisia. Method(s): This was a cross-sectional study, for descriptive and analytical purposes, conducted on google drive in May 2021.We involved 97 junior and secondary school teachers from Sfax, Tunisia, practicing in public high schools. Anxiety was assessed by using Generalized Anxiety Disorder tool (GAD-7). Result(s): The average age of the participants was 44.23 years old with a sex-ratio (M/F) of 0.32. Since the advent of COVID-19, 54.2% had presented sleep disturbances while 10.4% had suicidal thoughts. Among all participants, 77.8% were afraid of the virus transmission within the classroom or the school and 81.3% reported regular mask wear at work. The median score on the GAD-7 was 6.5 (Q1=3, Q3=11). Scores' distribution indicated that 68% of the participants had no to mild symptoms of anxiety while 32% had moderate to severe anxiety. Furthermore, the presence of anxiety was associated to the female gender (p=0.01), sleep disturbances (p<0.001), suicidal thoughts (p=0.006), and to the conviction that wearing masks blocks the transmission of voice, information or emotions between teacher and student (p=0.025). Conclusion(s): During the COVID-19 outbreak, high school teachers in Sfax, Tunisia have high levels of anxiety.This can lead to a decreased effectiveness of their complex work.

Perceived stress during the COVID-19 pandemic among the tunisian population

IntroductionDocumenting Tunisian’ stress responses to an unprecedented pandemic is essential for mental health interventions and policy-making.ObjectivesTo describe the perceived stress generated by the Covid-19 epidemic and confinement among the Tunisian people.MethodsParticipants had to fill out a questionnaire including epidemiological data and the Perceived Stress Scale 10 (PSS10), which is the most widely used psychological instrument for measuring the stress perception. Individual scores can range from 0 to 40 with higher scores indicating higher perceived stress.ResultsOur study included 121 subjects, of which 70.6% were women.They had an average age of 36.52 years and a history of psychiatric disorders in 13.1% of cases, such as anxiety disorders (10.4%), depressive disorders (5.9%) and obsessive compulsive disorders (2.3%). More than one in two participants (61.4%) reported the presence of sleep disorders. Regarding medical history, participants declared having asthma (5%), diabetes (1.8%), high blood pressure (3.6%), and a chronic disease with corticosteroid treatment (5%). The mean PSS score was 16.96. This last was correlated to age (p<0.001), female gender (p<0.001), primary or secondary school level (p=0.03), a history of anxiety (p<0.001) and depressive disorders (p<0.001), and to sleep disorders (p<0.001).ConclusionsThe stress level among the Tunisian people during the Covid-19 pandemic was very close to that observed in other countries, deserving special attention especially among vulnerable populations.

Impact of the COVID-19 virus and confinement on the mental health of the tunisian population: Anxiety and depression

IntroductionThe 2019 Coronavirus disease epidemic is a public health emergency of international concern and poses a challenge to psychological resilience.ObjectivesTo study the psychological repercussions in terms of anxiety and depression of the Coronavirus pandemic on the Tunisian population.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study. We used an online questionnaire on Facebook, on June 2020. The heteroquestionnaire included epidemiological data and two scales: the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI Form Y-1) to evaluate the anxiety level at the time of the study, and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ 9) to detect a characterized depressive episode.ResultsWe included 121 participants. They had an average age of 36.52 years with a sex ratio (M/F) of 0.41. The mean STAI score was 43.12 while the PHQ score was 7.46, indicating that 30.8% of the participants suffered from depression. Both scores were correlated to female sex (p=0.01 for STAI and p=0.02 for PHQ), a history of anxiety (p<0.001) and depressive disorders (p<0.001) and to poor sleep quality (p<0.001). The STAI score was also associated with a family history of high blood pressure (p=0.004), while the PHQ score was correlated to a family history of diabetes (p=0.02), a widowed or divorced marital status (p<0.001) and to a single lifestyle (p=0.03). Furthermore, the two scores (STAI-Y and PHQ 9) were also associated (p<0.001;r=0.67).ConclusionsThe psychological impact of Coronavirus epidemic seems not negligible requiring psychological interventions to improve the mental health of vulnerable groups.