Abstract
Medical staff were battling against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) at the expense of their physical and mental health, particularly at risk for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In this case, intervening PTSD of medical staff and preparing them for future outbreaks are important. Previous studies showed that perceived stress was related to the development of PTSD. Hence, in this study, the association between risk perception of medical staff and PTSD symptoms in COVID-19 and the potential links were explored. Three hundred four medical staff's exposure to COVID-19 patients, risk perception for working during COVID-19, PTSD symptoms, anxiety, and sleep quality were measured. Mediation analysis tested the indirect effects of anxiety and sleep quality on the relationship between risk perceptions and PTSD symptoms; 27.6% of participants were deemed as having probable PTSD diagnosis. Mediation analysis showed a significant chain-mediating effect of anxiety and sleep quality on the relationships between risk perceptions and PTSD symptoms; higher risk perceptions were related to increased anxiety, worsened sleep quality, and severe PTSD symptoms. Conclusively, medical staff have a high prevalence of PTSD symptoms after 3 months of COVID-19. Their PTSD symptoms were associated with the perceived risk level through the potential links with anxiety and sleep quality. Therefore, risk perception could be critical for our medical staff's responses to public health emergencies. It could be plausible to intervene in the perceived stress to alleviate aroused anxiety and improve sleep quality and thereby deter the development of PTSD.
Highlights
The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has brought enormous physical and psychological pressure on Chinese medical staff
We explored the model with the total sample and the other model with controlling the variable of age; results showed changes were detected in the regression weights but were not in the significant coefficients of paths
The overall purpose of this study was to develop an understanding of the relationship between risk perceptions, anxiety, sleep quality, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms of medical staff on the background of COVID-19
Summary
The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has brought enormous physical and psychological pressure on Chinese medical staff. Medical staff often have various psychological problems under a high-pressure and risky antiepidemic situation [1]. The overall incidence of medical staff ’s anxiety was 34.7% during the defense against COVID-19, which was obviously higher than before [2]. Medical staff suffered more sleep problems than the general public [3]. At the heart of the unparalleled crisis, medical staff must continue to successfully treat their patients and maintain personal responsibility, including taking care of their families and themselves. The aggravated psychological burden leads to medical staff ’s burnout, insomnia, or even more serious problems [4]
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