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Introduction: Vaccines are effective interventions that can reduce the high burden of COVID19 globally. However, public vaccine hesitancy is a pressing problem for public health authorities. Objective(s): This study aimed to assess the prevalence of vaccination within mentally ill population and to point out the factors of acceptance and reticence. Method(s): We conducted a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study. It was carried out on a clinical population who consult in the psychiatry department in Sfax's university hospital Hedi Chaker. Patients included in our study were aged between 21 and 69 years and were not in a decompensation phase of their psychiatric illness Results: Forty five patients were included. The mean age was 45+/-13 years old. Our population was made up of 3 women (6.7%) and 42 men (93.3%).A rate of 42.2% of the patients was of urban origin, 15.6% lived with a partner, 77.8% were unemployed and 46.7% were schizophrenic. In our study population, five patients had COVID 19 (11.1%), fourteen patients (31.1%) were vaccinated and eight patients (17.8%) asked their psychiatrist to vaccine. The main reasons of vaccination were their belief that vaccination decreases the chance of contracting COVID 19 and its complications (0.00) , that COVID is lethal (0.002), and the fact that they trust it (0.001). Thirtyone patients (68.9%) refused vaccination, mainly due to reading or hearing negative information about vaccination (0.025). Vaccination wasn't correlated neither to the fact that it could be a conspiracy nor to the diagnostic. Conclusion(s): Our study reveals that one third of mentally ill patients are vaccinated. The reasons of acceptance of vaccination are multiple in opposite of the hesitancy factors.
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Introduction: The COVID pandemic brought an overwhelming impact on hospital systems and personnel in the world. Objective(s): Our study aimed to examine the impact of the COVID pandemic on the attitude and mental health of healthcare professionals working in COVID departments. Method(s): We included 23 healthcare professionals working in the COVID departments of the Hospitals of Sfax. Sociodemographic data, medical history and COVID related details were collected from the participants. Their mental health was assessed by the Hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS). Result(s): In our sample, 26.1% were men and 73.9% were women, they were aged from 26 to 52. They worked for 57 hours per week, including 27.38 hours of direct contact with COVID positive patients and 5.43 nightshifts per month. A rate of 52.2% of the participants claimed having enough protection tools and 13% confirmed having enough equipment for patient management. 30.4% feared the lack of equipment and 39.1% considered themselves trained enough to manage COVID patients. As for the protective measures, 95.7% reduced contact with family members, 30.4% stopped visiting their parents, 8.7% left the family house and 4.3% didn't take any particular measure. The mean HADS depression score was 9.61, and 60.86% had a Depression score equal or greater than 8, indicating depression. As for the HADS Anxiety score, its mean was 10.61 and 69.56% had a score equal or greater than 8, indicating anxiety. Conclusion(s): The pandemic had a big impact on healthcare professionals working in COVID departments, as shows the relatively high depression and anxiety rate.
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Introduction: The COVID pandemic had a heavy impact on the mental health of people in general and healthcare professionals in particular. Objective(s): Our study aimed to examine the the prevalence of posttraumatic stress symptoms among healthcare professionals working in COVID departments, and assess their professional quality of life. Method(s): Our sample consisted of 23 healthcare professionals who are working in the COVID departments of the Hospitals of Sfax. We collected their sociodemographic data, their medical history and COVID-related details. Their mental health was assessed by the Impact of Event scale (IES-R) and the professional quality of life scale (ProQOL-5) Results: The sex ratio in our study was 17:6, with a mean age of 31.79 years. They carried out 5.43 nightshifts per month, 57 hours of work per week including 27.38 hours of direct contact with COVID positive patients. A rate of 21.74% of the patients had a high IES-R score, indicating severe post traumatic stress symptoms. As for the subscales of the professional quality of life score, 21.73% of the participants had a low compassion satisfaction score, 65.21% of the participants had a moderate one and 13% had a high one. A rate of 91.3%of the participants had amoderate burnout score, the mean was 29.39. The secondary traumatization score was low in 26% of the cases, moderate in 60.86%, high in 13% and the mean was 27.91. Conclusion(s): COVID healthcare professionals are at a relatively high risk of developing burnout and post-traumatic stress symptoms.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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IntroductionFactors causing anxiety among healthcare professionals (HCP) are increasing, and psychosocial causes are the most common. During the COVID-19 pandemic, HCP are exposed to additional stressful factors.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of trait-anxiety and its associated factors towards the COVID-19 outbreak among Tunisian HCP.MethodsA cross-sectional descriptive and analytical study conducted among Tunisian HCP during November and December 2020. The data were collected by an online questionnaire including the sociodemographic information and the “General anxiety questionnaire of Spielberger” (STAI-Y-B) which was used to assess the trait-anxiety.ResultsA total of 135 HCP participated in this study (47.4% female and 52.6% male). The average age was 31.98 years (SD=6.59). Of the participants, 3% were nurses, 8.1% were interns, 48.1% were residents, 34.8% were specialist doctors and 5.9% were generalist doctors. Concerning marital status, 61.5% were single, 36.3% were married and 2.2% were divorced. Of HCP involved in the study, 13.3% of the participants had a history of chronic somatic-disorder and 11.9 % of them had a history of a psychiatric disorder. The prevalence of trait-anxiety in HCP was 53.3%. The analysis showed that anxious HCP were more younger (p=0.002) and had history of a psychiatric disorder (p=0.017) compared to non-anxious HCP. However, no significant difference was found by gender, marital status and professional degree according to trait-anxiety.ConclusionsIn our study, we found that more than the half of HCP were anxious and these one were more younger and had history of psychiatric disorders.DisclosureNo significant relationships.
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IntroductionThe COVID-19 pandemic may cause elevated levels of anxiety in healthcare professionals (HCP). Identifying factors that could help maintain mental health especially social support could be helpful in facing this stressful situation.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to asses the relationship between the trait-anxiety and perceived social support among Tunisian HCP in the current pandemic wave of COVID-19.MethodsA cross- sectional descriptive and analytic study conducted among Tunisian HCP during November and December 2020. The data were collected by an online questionnaire. The trait-anxiety was assessed using the “General Anxiety questionnaire of Spielberger” (STAI-Y-B). We used the “Social Support Questionnaire” to measure availability and satisfaction regarding perceived social support.ResultsParticipants were 135 HCP, and aged from 24 to 61 years old (average age 31.98 years). The sex ratio was 1.1 (71 males and 64 females). Of HCP involved in the study, 61.5% were single, 36.3% were married and 2.2% were divorced. The average scores of availability and satisfaction regarding perceived social were 7.79 (SD=3.56) and 28.41 (SD=6.75), respectively. Seventy-two of the HCP had a trait-anxious. Analysis showed that social support satisfaction scores were significantly lower in trait-anxious HCP (p<0.001). However, there was no significant difference in the score of availability according to trait-anxiety (p=0.49).ConclusionsOur study highlighted the existence of a deficit on perceived social support satisfaction among trait-anxious Tunisian HCP. Perceived social support as a determinant of trait anxiety should be the focus of social work in this period.DisclosureNo significant relationships.
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IntroductionThe current pandemic wave of COVID-19 has become a global threat. Healthcare professionals (HCP), by being on the front line in managing this pandemic, confronted high levels of stress and traumatic experiences.ObjectivesThe aims of our study were to evaluate the trait-anxiety among Tunisian HCP and its impact on coping strategies.MethodsA cross- sectional descriptive and analytic study conducted among Tunisian HCP during November and December 2020. The data was collected by an online questionnaire distributed through social media. The trait-anxiety was assessed using the “General Anxiety questionnaire of Spielberger” (STAI-Y-B) and the “Ways of coping checklist revised (WCC-R) questionnaire” identified three types of coping (problem-focused, emotion-focused and social-support seeking).ResultsParticipants were 135 HCP (71 males and 64 females) and aged from 24 to 61 years old (average age 31.98 years;SD 6.59 years). Of HCP involved in the study, 61.5% were single, 36.3% were married and 2.2% were divorced. Seventy-two of them had a trait-anxious. As a coping style, 85.2% of participants used problem-focused style, 88.9% of them used emotion-focused style and 63% of them used social support seeking style. The analysis of WCC-R showed that anxious HCP used emotion-focused coping more than non anxious HCP (p= 0.028). However, there was no significant difference in problem-focused or social support seeking coping styles and presence of trait-anxiety.ConclusionsIn our study, we find that the most anxious Tunisian HCP focused on emotions strategies. Personality traits play on attitudes of coping strategies.DisclosureNo significant relationships.
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The corona virus, known as COVID19 has hit the world very hard at 2020, causing worldwide lockdown and forcing people to use online tools to continue working remotely and maintain the economy. Educational institutions have not been spared either: To preserve the students’ health, the teaching mode has switched from in-person to online teaching. Schools and universities have to cope with this change in a very short period of time and embrace it to ensure the continuity of the learning process. This paper presents a case study where the authors illustrate their own experience and their creative teaching practices of online learning at King Faisal University, which some of them make use of technology. The paper highlights also the different encountered challenges and how the tools and workarounds the authors used to tackle them. © 2020 IEEE.