Depression, anxiety, stress, and resilience among the primary survivors of natural disaster: A study with special reference to Kerala Flood

Abstract

Background: Kerala, the southernmost state in India experienced the worst flood in its history, in August 2018. The disaster led its survivors to psychological trauma, along with several other impacts. Aims: The present study assessed the mental health status and level of resilience among the primary survivors in the postdisaster phase of Kerala flood, and the possible interlinkage of demographic factors with the study variables. Materials and Methods: The study has done on a sample of 50 primary survivors of flood selected using a purposive sampling method. Two rating scales-Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 and brief resilience scale-were used for collecting data, along with a sociodemographic information sheet prepared by the researcher, which was administered in a face to face interview with the participants. IBM SPSS software (version 21) was used for data analysis and statistical tests such as t-test, analysis of variance, and Pearson's correlation tests were used to interpret the data. Results: Results revealed the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress among the survivors in the postdisaster phase. Statistically significant difference was found in depression and stress scores in terms of education, where survivors with higher education showed lower stress and depression. Results also showed a comorbidity of depression, anxiety, and stress and a negative correlation between resilience and stress scores. Conclusions: The disaster had a significant impact on the survivors' mental health and need medical interventions to address it. The educational status and resilience level of the survivors are important determinants of postdisaster mental health.