Prevalence of Perceived Stress, Anxiety, Depression, and Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms in Health Care Workers and Other Workers in Alberta During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Cross-Sectional Survey

Abstract

Background During pandemics, effective containment and mitigation measures may also negatively influence psychological stability. As knowledge about COVID-19 rapidly evolves, global implementation of containment and mitigation measures has varied greatly, with impacts to mental wellness. Assessing the impact of COVID-19 on the mental health needs of health care workers and other workers may help mitigate mental health impacts and secure sustained delivery of health care and other essential goods and services. Objective This study assessed the self-reported prevalence of stress, anxiety, depression, and obsessive-compulsive symptoms in health care workers and other workers seeking support through Text4Hope, an evidence-based SMS text messaging service supporting the mental health of residents of Alberta, Canada, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods An online cross-sectional survey gathered demographic (age, gender, ethnicity, education, relationship, housing and employment status, employment type, and isolation status) and clinical characteristics using validated tools (self-reported stress, anxiety, depression, and contamination/hand hygiene obsessive-compulsive symptoms). Descriptive statistics and chi-square analysis were used to compare the clinical characteristics of health care workers and other workers. Post hoc analysis was conducted on variables with >3 response categories using adjusted residuals. Logistic regression determined associations between worker type and likelihood of self-reported symptoms of moderate or high stress, generalized anxiety disorder, and major depressive disorder, while controlling for other variables. Results Overall, 8267 surveys were submitted by 44,992 Text4Hope subscribers (19.39%). Of these, 5990 respondents were employed (72.5%), 958 (11.6%) were unemployed, 454 (5.5%) were students, 559 (6.8%) were retired, 234 (2.8%) selected “other,” and 72 (0.9%) did not indicate their employment status. Most employed survey respondents were female (n=4621, 86.2%). In the general sample, the 6-week prevalence rates for moderate or high stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms were 85.6%, 47.0%, and 44.0%, respectively. Self-reported symptoms of moderate or high stress, anxiety, and depression were all statistically significantly higher in other workers than in health care workers (P<.001). Other workers reported higher obsessive-compulsive symptoms (worry about contamination and compulsive handwashing behavior) after the onset of the pandemic (P<.001), while health care worker symptoms were statistically significantly higher before and during the COVID-19 pandemic (P<.001). This finding should be interpreted with caution, as it is unclear the extent to which the adaptive behavior of health care workers or the other workers might be misclassified by validated tools during a pandemic. Conclusions Assessing symptoms of prevalent stress, anxiety, depression, and obsessive-compulsive behavior in health care workers and other workers may enhance our understanding of COVID-19 mental health needs. Research is needed to understand more fully the relationship between worker type, outbreak phase, and mental health changes over time, as well as the utility of validated tools in health care workers and other workers during pandemics. Our findings underscore the importance of anticipating and mitigating the mental health effects of pandemics using integrated implementation strategies. Finally, we demonstrate the ease of safely and rapidly assessing mental health needs using an SMS text messaging platform during a pandemic. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) RR2-10.2196/19292

Mental Health Adverse Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic on Health Care Workers in North West Ethiopia: A Multicenter Cross-Sectional Study

“…In our study, the magnitude of depression was consistent with the study conducted in Libya 56.3%. 5 On the other hand, the prevalence of depression on health-care workers was higher than the studies conducted in China 44.37%, 6 12.2%, 7 50.4%, 8 15.4%, 9 40%, 22 Spanish 46%, 23 systematic review studies 22.8%, 12 21.7%, 24 India 11.4%, 25 Singapore 8.9%, 13 Nepal 8%, 26 Alberta Canada 44.0%, 27 Malaysia 21.8%, 28 whereas the prevalence of depression in this study was lower than studies done in Turkey 77.6%, 29 64.7%. 30 The reason for this discrepancy might be, the simple size difference, the time of research done.…”

“…Similarly, the prevalence of anxiety was in line with the study carried out in Turkey 60.2%. 29 Conversely, the prevalence of anxiety was higher than the studies conducted in China 46.04%, 6 44.6%, 8 13%, 7 32.6%, 9 38%, 22 Spanish 58.6%, 23 systematic review studies 23.2%, 12 22.1%, 24 India 17.7%, 25 Singapore 14.5%, 13 Nepal 38%, 26 Libya 46.7%, 5 Alberta Canada 47.0%, 27 Turkey 51.6%, 30 and Malaysia 31.6%. 28 The difference could be the sample size difference, the time of the research done, the level of health service development, and the difference in experiences to similar pandemics.…”

“… 6 On the other hand, our estimation was higher than the studies conducted in Spanish 41.1%, 23 India 3.7%, 25 Singapore 6.6%, 13 Turkey 41.2% 30 and Malaysia 29.1%, 28 while the magnitude of stress was lower than studies conducted in China 71.5%, 8 18.0%, 9 Turkey 76.4%, 29 and Alberta Canada 85.6%. 27 This could be the sample size difference, the health system service difference.…”

Learning the Mental Health Impact of COVID-19 in the United States With Explainable Artificial Intelligence: Observational Study

“…More than half a million lives and more than 400 million jobs have been lost [ 1 ], causing a considerable degree of fear, worry, and concern. These effects are seen in the population at large and may be more pronounced among certain groups such as youth, frontline workers [ 2 ], caregivers, and people with chronic medical conditions. The new normal has introduced unprecedented interventions of countrywide lockdowns that are necessary to control the spread but have led to increased social isolation.…”

Anxiety amongst physicians during COVID-19: cross-sectional study in Pakistan

“…With regard to our second hypothesis, we were able to prove that greater exhaustion, greater family strain, and reduced feelings of protection impact on levels of anxiety among physicians. Other research from the developed world [29], developing countries [30], and Pakistan itself [31] corroborate that physicians are suffering from anxiety during the pandemic. Higher workload is a crisis these days across the world due to staff shortages, leading to long and stressful duties for critical patients [32].…”