Psychological Impact of Quarantine on Caregivers at a Children's Hospital for Contact with Case of COVID-19

Abstract

Quarantine often provokes negative psychological consequences. Thus, we aimed to identify the psychological and behavioral responses and stressors of caregivers quarantined with young patients after a close contact to a coronavirus disease 2019 case at a children's hospital. More than 90% of the caregivers reported feelings of worry and nervousness, while some of them reported suicidal ideations (4.2%), and/or homicidal ideations (1.4%). Fear of infection of the patient (91.7%) and/or oneself (86.1%) were most frequently reported stressors. A multidisciplinary team including infection control team, pediatrician, psychiatrist, nursing staff and legal department provided supplies and services to reduce caregiver's psychological distress. Psychotropic medication was needed in five (6.9%), one of whom was admitted to the psychiatry department due to suicidality. Quarantine at a children's hospital makes notable psychological impacts on the caregivers and a multidisciplinary approach is required.

Psychological and Behavioral Impact of Lockdown and Quarantine Measures for COVID-19 Pandemic on Children, Adolescents and Caregivers: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Kim et al [ 17 ] studied behavioral and psychological responses and stressors of 72 caregivers quarantined with 62 hospitalized children after close contact with the COVID-19 affected case. About 90% of the caregivers had feelings of worry nervousness and worry, 91%, and 86% of parents feared the risk of infection to their child and themselves, respectively.…”

“…Similarly, students also suffered additional psychological stress due to interrupted academics and uncertain future [ 9–12 ]. The caregivers were also found to be increasingly worried about the impaired behavior and psychological symptoms are seen in their children during this pandemic [ 16 , 17 ]. Although a large number of narrative reviews and even several studies from different parts of the globe have tried to address this problem, the prevalence and severity of these psychopathologies seem to vary widely.…”

Job Demands, Resources and Strains of Outpatient Caregivers during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Germany: A Qualitative Study

“…There are already studies that have analyzed the demands of healthcare professionals and/or the impact on mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic [ 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 ]. Most of the existing studies examined medical staff from China (cf.…”

How to respond when COVID-19 invades a children’s hospital: lessons from Asan Medical Centre in Korea

“…Additionally, when someone who is diagnosed with COVID-19 is in a public place, how this is confronted is important, especially for vulnerable groups such as children. In this manuscript, we describe the process of dealing with COVID-19 patients related to hospital, community, and government responses, in the paediatric ward of the biggest hospital in Korea [4,5].…”