Psychological Impact of Masks and Infection-Prevention Plastic Partitions on Anxiety for Infection and Patient-Doctor Relationships During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Prim Care Companion CNS Disord
; 23(4)2021 07 08.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1302621
ABSTRACT
Objective:
To investigate the impact of masks and plastic partitions on patient-doctor communication and subjective anxiety for infection in patients with psychiatric disorders.Methods:
Subjects were patients who visited a psychiatric clinic in Japan from April 27 to August 31, 2020. Anxiety of being infected and the psychological barrier to communication were evaluated on a 5-point scale.Results:
The final analysis included 425 patients. Most participants answered that there was no change with regard to communication when the doctor was wearing a mask (n = 353, 91.0%) or using a plastic partition (n = 318, 82.8%). Most participants responded that anxiety for being infected was very mild, a little mild, or not changed by the doctor wearing a mask and using a plastic partition. Most participants felt significantly less anxiety with the doctor wearing a mask/using a plastic partition before than after the state of emergency declaration (P = .005 for mask and P < .001 for plastic partition). Participants in the older age range felt significantly higher anxiety compared to those in the younger and middle age range groups from doctors wearing masks (P < .001) and compared to those in the middle age range group from plastic partitions (P = .001).Conclusions:
Use of masks and plastic partitions in psychiatric practice is recommended, as it may result in reduction of anxiety for infection without affecting patient-doctor communication in patients with psychiatric disorders. The generalizability of the results of the present study should be tested.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Anxiety
/
Physician-Patient Relations
/
Protective Devices
/
Attitude to Health
/
Communicable Disease Control
/
Mentally Ill Persons
/
COVID-19
/
Masks
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Randomized controlled trials
Limits:
Adolescent
/
Adult
/
Aged
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
/
Young adult
Language:
English
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
PCC.21m02921
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