Mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic on therapists at an inpatient rehabilitation facility

Abstract

Background: Healthcare workers have faced extraordinary work-related stress in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech-language pathology providers at inpatient rehabilitation facilities may represent a distinct at-risk subgroup for work-related stress during the pandemic due to the usual nature of their job duties, including close physical contact and extended treatment times. Objective: To evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on work-related stress and occurrence of depression and anxiety in physical therapists, occupational therapists, and speech-language pathologists during the first surge of COVID-19 hospitalizations. Design: Cross-sectional survey. Setting: Academic, freestanding inpatient rehabilitation facility. Participants: Survey responses were collected from 38 therapists. Intervention: A 26-item electronic questionnaire containing a mix of multiple-choice and open-ended questions. Main Outcome Measures: Positive screens for depression or anxiety as measured by the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and the General Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) scale, respectively. Results: Seven individuals (19%) scored at or above the clinically significant cutoff of 10 on each the PHQ-9 and GAD-7, corresponding to increased risk for depression and anxiety. Therapists younger than 30 years old had significantly higher GAD-7 scores compared to therapists between 30-39 years old (p