Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Among Frontline Healthcare Workers During COVID 19

Abstract

Objective: To determine the frequency of depression, anxiety, and stress during COVID-19 among frontline healthcare workers (doctors vs. rescuers) in Pakistan. Study Design: Cross-sectional online questionnaire survey. Place and Duration of Study: Centre for Islamic Psychology, Riphah International University, Lahore Campus from 25 April 2020 to 20 June 2020. Materials and Methods: A total of 364 frontline healthcare workers (n=182 doctors and n=182 rescuers) were included in the final analysis. The Depression, Anxiety, Stress Scale (DASS-21) was used to collect online data via Google form through convenience sampling. Statistical data analysis was done using the Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS-23), and the frequencies, percentages, mean, and standard deviation were calculated. Independent samples-ttest was employed to identify differences between doctors and rescuers on depression,anxiety, and stress scale. Results: The mean age of the participants was 28.79 + 5.46 years. The study identified highly significant difference in depression (t (363) = 11.10, p<.01), anxiety (t (363) = 7.30, p<.01), and stress (t (363) = 10.21,p<.01) between doctors and rescue workers during COVID-19. The majority of doctors reported a moderate level of depression (41%), extremely severe anxiety (30%), and a moderate level of stress (22%), while the majority of rescue workers reported a moderate level of depression (21%), moderate anxiety (14%) and extremely severe stress (10%). Conclusion: The frequency of depression, anxiety, and stress is higher among doctors as compared to rescuers. The study has manifold implications for healthcare workers and psychological health professionals to implement preventive and intervention programs to combat psychological problems.

Keywords

• anxiety
• covid-19
• depression
• frontline workers
• stress.