Abstract
Background: COVID-19, an unprecedented pandemic significantly affects psychologically healthcare workers (HCWs). The World Health Organization has also announced the pandemic as a Global Public Health Crisis. Priority to observe psychological effects was critical to understanding the various factors and delivering a tailored approach to treatment. This study aims to analyse the prevalence and severity of depression, anxiety, and stress amongst HCWs in Odisha during the pandemic. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional, observational, questionnaire-based online study was conducted. A total of 300 HCWs participated. The collection of data was done online through a self-administered validated depression, anxiety, and stress (DASS-21) questionnaire designed in Google form. The questionnaire has three sections, consent form, demographic characteristics, and DASS-21. For analysis of categorical variables descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, and Binomial test were used, and for continuous variables, Kruskal Wallis test & Mann-Whitney test were used and ‘p’<0.05 was considered significant. Results: In this study, respondents were young (63.7%) and the majority were females (61.7%). Doctors constitute 57%, nurses 35%, dentist 17.7% and pharmacists 7% (p<0.001). The majority work in non-government sectors (p<0.001), having 1-5 years of experience (p<0.001). As many as 42.7% of HCWs have depression, 53.7% anxiety, and 13.3% stress. The professional category has a significant association with depression, anxiety, stress, and overall, DAS score (p<0.01). Doctors have the highest level of depression, anxiety, stress, and overall, DAS score, followed by nurses, dentists, and pharmacists. Gender played a significant association with anxiety and stress. Females have a significantly higher level of anxiety and stress (p<0.05). Conclusion: The present study revealed a higher proportion of depression, anxiety, and stress in HCWs. Early screening for detecting mental health issues should be initiated for HCWs who are being exposed repeatedly. Hence, group-specific need-based psychotherapy is critical during the pandemic.
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