Mental Health Indices of Intensive Care Unit and Emergency Room Frontliners during the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Pandemic in India

Abstract

Background: The contagious coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a significant psychological impact on healthcare workers. Intensive care unit (ICU) and emergency room (ER) providers have functioned in an environment of fear for their health as well as their family well-being. Aim: The aim of the article was to study mental health disorders (anxiety, depression, stress, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and sleep quality) in frontliners and to identify factors affecting mental health indices. Methods: A survey of 153 doctors and nurses working in ICU and ER was conducted from December 2020 to January 2021 using questionnaire with clinically validated scales: Acute Stress Disorder Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, Beck’s Depression Inventory (BDI), Zung Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), Global Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPS), and New General Self-efficacy (NGSE) Scale. Analysis was performed to identify of gender, age, place of work, self-efficacy, and social support using logistic regression. Results: Of the 153 participants, 21.6% had PTSD, 88.6% had moderate to high stress, 16.3% had anxiety, and 59.5% had poor sleep. Of these, the majority were females and those aged ≤30 years. Males had lesser depression, anxiety, and poor sleep compared to females (p <0.05). Participants working in ER reported higher stress as compared to those working in ICU (p <0.05). PTSD, perceived stress, depression, anxiety, and poor sleep were higher in participants with low-to-moderate perceived self-efficacy as compared to participants with high self-efficacy (p <0.05). Conclusion: This study reveals significant psychological distress among ER and ICU frontliners during severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic, a typical high-acuity environment during the nonpandemic times.