A new study has reported that more than half of the front-line workers involved in COVID-19 care are at risk of suffering from one or more mental health problems. These include acute traumatic stress, depression, anxiety, problematic alcohol use, and insomnia. According to the daily toll of COVID-19, the new cases and the growing death rate are overlooking the casualties, the rising risk of mental health problems among frontline working professionals.
In a study (evaluating the risk of traumatic stress, depression, anxiety, alcohol use, insomnia) of 571 hospital personnel, nearly fifteen to thirty percent of respondents were screened positive for each disorder. Chances of screening positive were comparable between groups for probable acute traumatic stress, anxiety disorder, depressive disorder, and alcohol use disorder. The emergency personnel reported significantly higher rates of insufficient sleep than healthcare workers. Additionally, logistic regressions have also reported that respondents, who reported having an immunocompromised condition, had higher odds of acute traumatic stress, anxiety, and depression. Overall, the mental health risks observed in the COVID-19 pandemic are elevated above previous viral outbreaks (SARS) and comparable to rates shown in disasters (9/11 attacks; Hurricane Katrina).
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Hannah M. Wright, Brandon J. Griffin, Kotaro Shoji, Tiffany M. Love, Scott A. Langenecker, Charles C. Benight, Andrew J. Smith. Pandemic-related mental health risk among frontline personnel. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 2020; DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2020.10.045 1 Wright HM, Griffin BJ, Shoji K, Love TM, Langenecker SA, Benight CC, Smith AJ. Pandemic-related mental health risk among front line personnel. J Psychiatr Res. 2020 Nov 4:S0022-3956(20)31066-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2020.10.045. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33189356.