Abstract
Background and Objectives: Frontline medical staff usually experience high levels of stress, which could greatly impact their work output. We conducted a survey to investigate the level of stress and its association with job types, work departments, and medical centers among COVID-19 pandemic frontline medical personnel. Materials and Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey using a self-administered questionnaire among 307 frontline medical staff who cared for COVID-19 patients in Daegu city. We used a 33-item questionnaire to assess respondents’ general characteristics, job stress, personal effects associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, and their stress level. A general health questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) was included in our questionnaire. Results: Majority (74.3%) of the respondents were in the stress group. The mean GHQ-12 score was 14.31 ± 4.96. More females (67.4%, p < 0.05) and nurses (73.3%, p = 0.001) were in the stress group compared to males and doctors. Medical staff in the general ward considered the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic situation higher. Nurses perceived work changes (p < 0.05), work burden (p < 0.05), and personal impact (p < 0.05) more serious than doctors. Medical staff in Level 3 emergency department (ED) perceived a lack of real-time information (p = 0.012), a lack of resources, and negative personal impacts associated with the pandemic as more serious than staff in Level 1 and Level 2 EDs. Medical staff in the intensive care unit perceived work changes (p < 0.05), work burden (p < 0.05), and lack of personal protective equipment (p = 0.002) as more serious than staff in the ED and general ward. Conclusion: Providing real-time information and resources for reducing work burden and negative personal impact is central to maximizing the work output of the COVID-19 pandemic frontline medical staff. Supporting their mental health through regular programs and intervention is also imperative.
Highlights
Since the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed in South Korea on 19 January 2020, a surge in the number of cases was reported by 18 February 2020 in the form of cluster infection related to the Shincheonji religious group in Daegu city, a major epidemic area of
principal component analysis (PCA) with Varimax rotation demonstrated the presence of five components with Eigenvalues exceeding one
Studies during the middle east respiratory syndrome (MERS) epidemic reported that many frontline medical staff suffered from job stress, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, fear, and depression [15,16]
Summary
The COVID-19 outbreak started in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. Health Organization declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International. Concern on January 30, 2020, and a pandemic on March 11 of the same year. There are 132,046,206 confirmed cases and 2,867,242 deaths due to COVID-19 worldwide [1]. Since the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed in South Korea on 19 January 2020, a surge in the number of cases was reported by 18 February 2020 in the form of cluster infection related to the Shincheonji religious group in Daegu city, a major epidemic area of
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