COVID-19-related stigma and its impact on psychological distress: A cross-sectional study in Wuhan, China.
Health Sci Rep
; 5(5): e758, 2022 Sep.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1976721
ABSTRACT
Background and Aims:
Health-related stigma arises from the perceived association between a person or group of certain characteristics and a specific disease. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has brought about stigma targeted at individuals and groups who are perceived to be connected with the virus. Wuhan of China was not only the locale where the first COVID-19 cases were detected in the world but was also the hardest hit across China.Methods:
Using new data (N = 1153) from a survey conducted in Wuhan in August 2020, this cross-sectional study aims to reveal the stigma experienced by residents in Wuhan during the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact of this experienced stigma on psychological distress, specifically posttraumatic stress disorder.Results:
69.47% (95% confidence interval (CI) 66.81%â72.13%) of the surveyed Wuhan residents have experienced some forms of stigma related to COVID-19. The average posttraumatic stress disorder score based on the impact of event scale-revised is 20.28 (95% CI 19.096â21.468) out of 88. In particular, 27.75% (95% CI 25.17%â30.34%) of the respondents display clinically significant distress symptoms. Moreover, this stigma not only aggravates individuals' posttraumatic stress disorder score by 10.652 (95% CI 8.163â13.141) but also elevates the chance of developing clinically significant distress symptoms. Specifically, the probability of clinical distress is significantly higher (p < 0.001) among those who have experienced stigma (33.66%) than those who have no such experiences (12.62%).Conclusion:
The public should be aware of the distress-inducing impact of stigma related to COVID-19 and prevent it from causing more harm to certain individuals and groups.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Qualitative research
/
Randomized controlled trials
Language:
English
Journal:
Health Sci Rep
Year:
2022
Document Type:
Article
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