Psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare workers at acute hospital settings in the South-East of Ireland: an observational cohort multicentre study.
BMJ Open
; 10(12): e042930, 2020 12 18.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-991833
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
Our study aims to understand the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic among healthcare workers (HCWs) at acute hospital settings in the South-East of Ireland, as a crucial step in guiding policies and interventions to maintain their psychological well-being.DESIGN:
Observational cohort study. PARTICIPANTS ANDSETTING:
472 HCWs participated from two distinct acute hospital settings, A and B, in the South-East of Ireland. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOMEMEASURES:
Measures of psychological distress-depression, anxiety, acute and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-as dictated by the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) and Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R). An independent sample t-test and a Mann-Whitney U test was used to determine significance of difference in continuous variables between groups. Categorical variables were assessed for significance with a χ2 test for independence.RESULTS:
The DASS-21 provided independent measures of depression (mean 4.57, IQR 2-7), anxiety (mean 3.87, IQR 1-6) and stress (mean 7.41, IQR 4-10). Positive scores were reflected in 201 workers (42.6%) for depression and 213 (45.1%) for both anxiety and stress. The IES-R measured subjective distress on three subscales intrusion (mean 1.085, IQR 0.375-1.72), avoidance (mean 1.008, IQR 0.375-1.5) and hyperarousal (mean 1.084, IQR 0.5-1.667). Overall, 195 cases (41.3%) were concerning for PTSD. Site B scored significantly higher across all parameters of depression (5.24 vs 4.08, p<0.01), anxiety (4.66 vs 3.3, p<0.01), stress (8.91 vs 6.33, p<0.01) and PTSD (0.058 vs 0.043, p<0.01). Worse outcomes were also noted in HCWs with underlying medical ailments.CONCLUSION:
Psychological distress is prevalent among HCWs during the COVID-19 pandemic; screening for adverse mental and emotional outcomes and developing timely tailored preventative measures with effective feedback are vital to protect their psychological well-being, both in the immediate and long-term.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Anxiety
/
Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic
/
Health Personnel
/
Occupational Stress
/
COVID-19
/
Hospitals
Type of study:
Cohort study
/
Diagnostic study
/
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Qualitative research
/
Randomized controlled trials
Topics:
Long Covid
/
Variants
Limits:
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
English
Journal:
BMJ Open
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Bmjopen-2020-042930
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