Scientific Reports (Dec 2022)

The role of discrimination in the relation between COVID-19 sequelae, psychological distress, and work impairment in COVID-19 survivors

  • Shinya Ishii,
  • Aya Sugiyama,
  • Noriaki Ito,
  • Kei Miwata,
  • Yoshihiro Kitahara,
  • Mafumi Okimoto,
  • Akemi Kurisu,
  • Kanon Abe,
  • Hirohito Imada,
  • Tomoyuki Akita,
  • Tatsuhiko Kubo,
  • Akira Nagasawa,
  • Toshio Nakanishi,
  • Toshiro Takafuta,
  • Masao Kuwabara,
  • Junko Tanaka

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-26332-6
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 12, no. 1
pp. 1 – 8

Abstract

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Abstract Perceived discrimination and work impairment are commonly observed in COVID-19 survivors, but their relationship has not been well understood. We aimed to evaluate the role of discrimination in the development of psychological distress and work impairment in COVID-19 survivors. From April 2020 to November 2021, 309 patients were recruited at two designated COVID-19 hospitals in Japan. Participants completed a standardized questionnaire including COVID-19 sequelae, psychological distress, impairments in work performance and perceived discrimination. The majority of participants (62.5%) experienced one or more COVID-19 sequelae. Psychological distress was observed in 36.9% and work impairment in 37.9%. In multivariate logistic regression analyses, COVID-19 sequelae and discrimination were associated with both psychological distress and work impairment. Mediation analysis demonstrated that the direct effect of sequelae on work impairment was non-significant after accounting for psychological distress, suggesting that the effect of sequelae on work impairment was mainly mediated through psychological distress. These findings were replicated in a subgroup analysis limited to patients with mild COVID-19. We conclude that discrimination plays an important role in the development of psychological distress and work impairment, and that both discrimination and psychological distress should be targets of intervention in COVID-19 survivors.