COVID-19 anxiety, psychological well-being and preventive behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic in Latin America and the Caribbean: relationships and explanatory model

This study assesses the relationship between COVID-19 anxiety and subjective well-being in terms of the mediating role of COVID-19 preventive behaviors. Additionally, the contribution of sociodemographic factors (sex and age) and risk perception on COVID-19 anxiety and its potential measurement invariance was tested in 5655 participants from 12 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. A mixture of both latent and observable variables were analyzed using a system of structural equations. The Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS), Preventive COVID-19 Infection Behaviors Scale (PCIBS) and single-item measures were used to assess the perceived probability of death, perceived severity and concern about transmitting COVID-19. The results indicated that there is a significant and relevant direct effect of COVID-19 anxiety on participants' well-being. Furthermore, COVID-19 anxiety significantly predicted both preventive behavior (beta = .29, p < .01) and well-being (beta = -.32, p < .01). The effects of COVID anxiety and preventive behavior explained 9.8% of the variance in well-being (R-square = .098);whereas, 8.4% of the variance in preventive behavior was associated with COVID anxiety (R-square = .084). Likewise, perceived likelihood of death from COVID, perceived severity of COVID, and concerns about COVID transmission were positively related to anxiety. Age was negatively related to anxiety, with men being less anxious than women. The results are invariant by country, i.e., the broad relationships found in the combined sample are also present in each individual country. The findings indicate that, although the exact relationships between variables may vary between countries, there are enough similarities to provide useful information about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in each of the countries included in the study.

Academic satisfaction among Health Sciences Students before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic is a public health emergency that has substantially modified medical education from face-to-face to online teaching modalities. Objective: To evaluate academic satisfaction before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in a sample of university students of health sciences in Peru. Material and Methods: Observational, cross-sectional, and comparative study. An ad hoc sociodemographic form was used;the following questions were included: How would you rate your academic performance at the university? Had you taken any virtual courses before the pandemic? Do you have internet connection at home? Did you fail any course last semester? What is your occupation? The Academic Satisfaction Scale (ASE), which was composed of eight items, was also used. All the questions were asked using a form that was valid on the virtual platform of the university for two weeks and applied in June 2019 (first evaluation) and August 2020 (second evaluation). Results: Among the sociodemographic variables evaluated, the poor quality of internet connectivity (Cohen’s d = -0,65) and self-assessment of performance as very high (Cohen’s d = -0,72) show moderate differences between 2019 and 2020. Conclusions: The academic satisfaction among health sciences students during the COVID-19 health emergency change considerably when the Internet connectivity is poor and the students evaluate themselves as high achievers, variables that can be considered when designing curricular strategies for health sciences students. © 2021 Universidad de Ciencias Medicas de La Hab. All rights reserved.

Effect of concern about COVID-19 on professional self-efficacy, psychological distress, anxiety, and depression in Peruvian health personnel

Introduction. Concern about becoming infected with COVID-19 is one of the reactions that has affected the mental health of Peruvian health care workers. Objective. To determine the effect of concern about COVID-19 on professional self-efficacy, psychological distress, anxiety, and depression in health personnel in the Puno region of Peru. Method. An explanatory, cross-sectional study was conducted with the voluntary participation of 401 health workers (such as nurses, physicians, nursing technicians, obstetricians, dentists, psychologists, and nutritionists) of both sexes (24.2% men and 75.5% women) from 12 health networks in the region of Puno, Peru. They were asked to answer the Scale of Concern for the Transmission of COVID-19 in Health Personnel (EPPC-Cov19), Patient Health Questionnarie-2 (PHQ-2, Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale-2 (GAD-2) and the Professional Self Efficacy Scale (AU-10). Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used for data analysis. Results. The factor loads of the explanatory model showed a good fit: X-2 (286) = 797.31, p < .001;IFC = .99;RMSEA= .06;SRMR = .07;WRMR = 1.25. Therefore concern about COVID-19 has a greater effect on anxiety (beta = .77) and depression (beta = .71), as well as psychological distress (beta = .65), and only a mild effect on work self-efficacy (beta = .12). Discussion and conclusion. Concern about the spread of COVID-19 affects depression, anxiety, psychological distress and work self-efficacy among Peruvian health workers in the Puno region of Peru.