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Background: Secondary traumatization exposure and mental health conditions of health care workers gained importance during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic period. Aims: In our study, we aim to research the secondary traumatization and associated factors among health care workers. Method: This cross-sectional study was applied through an online questionnaire using the snowball sampling method. Two hundred fifty-one health care workers from different units/services and 312 non-medical worker adults attended to the research. Health care workers were divided into two groups based on working with COVID-19 patients at the frontline or not. The data were collected via Introductory Information Form, Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale (STSS) and Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4) between 22 May and 30 May 2020. Results: Among the 563 participants, 251 (44.6%) were health care workers and 312 (55.4%) were non-medical workers. The anxiety, depression and secondary traumatization scores of the frontline health care workers for the COVID-19 were found to be significantly higher than those of the other health workers or non-medical workers ( p < .001). Also, we found that being a woman, being in the first years of the work, living with a parent, having a chronic disease, having a trauma history and increased social media use are related to having higher scores from the secondary traumatization scale. Conclusion: The secondary traumatization exposure and the mental health conditions of the health care workers directly working with the COVID-19 patients should be taken into consideration. It is important to provide social support, examine and control riskier groups for mental health regularly during the pandemic.

BackgroundThis study aimed to evaluate synthetic cannabinoid (SC)-induced psychosis in terms of patient profile and clinical characteristics with reference to concurrently hospitalized schizophrenic patients.MethodsA total of 81 male patients diagnosed with psychotic disorder induced by the use of SCs (n=50; mean (standard deviation [SD]) age: 25.9 (5.5) years) or with schizophrenia (n=31, mean (SD) age: 42.9 (11.6) years) based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, diagnosis criteria who were concurrently hospitalized at Erenköy Mental and Neurological Diseases Training and Research Hospital were included in this cross-sectional study. Data on sociodemographic characteristics, Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB), Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD), and Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A) were recorded in all the patients.ResultsMean (SD) age at disease onset in SC-induced psychosis patients was 22.3 (5.6) years; 26.0% had suicidal ideation and 58.4% were hospitalized involuntarily. Marijuana was the most common first used substance (72.0%), and solitary use of SC was noted in 38.0% of patients. SC-induced psychosis patients had similar PANSS positive, BPRS, HRSD, and FAB scores and significantly lower PANSS negative scores (18.0 [6.5] vs 22.3 [6.0], P=0.004) than patients with schizophrenia, while they had similar HAM-A scores (17.8 [10.3] vs 21.6 [5.5], P=0.085) as young schizophrenics. Age at onset for SC (r=0.364, P=0.05) or substance (r=0.395, P=0.01) use was correlated positively with total FAB scores.ConclusionIn conclusion, our findings revealed SC-induced psychosis to influence young individuals and be associated with remarkable rates of suicidal ideation and involuntary hospitalization as well as similar clinical picture with schizophrenia in terms of PANSS positive, BPRS, HRSD, HAM-A, and FAB scores. Younger age at onset was associated with poorer frontal lobe functions overall, regardless of the type of substance, and with poorer inhibitory control and programming performance in case of SC use.

Background The geriatric population is supposed to be at high risk for psychological distress as well as adverse outcomes and mortality during the COVID‐19 pandemic. This study aimed to investigate the levels of depression, anxiety, death anxiety and life satisfaction levels and factors related to life satisfaction in individuals aged 65 years and older during the pandemic and to compare these variables between nursing home (NH) and community‐dwelling older adults. Method This study has a cross‐sectional and descriptive design, and a total of 133 nursing NH and community‐dwelling older adults were enrolled in the study. Turkish death anxiety scale (TDAS), life satisfaction scale (SLS) and depression anxiety stress scale‐21 (DASS‐21) were used for the assessment. Results The majority of the older adults had no or mild depression, anxiety and stress symptoms in spite of the prolonged confinements, and were slightly satisfied with their lives. However, depression, anxiety, stress and TDAS levels were higher in participants aged 80 years and older. Residents of NHs had higher TDAS, depression and anxiety levels and lower SLS levels than community‐dwelling older adults. Participants who were meeting their children and/or grandchildren less than 2 h a week, were found to have significantly lower SLS and higher depression scores. The increase in depression and TDAS scores predicted a decrease in SLS scores in older adults. Conclusions As NH resident older adults have higher psychological distress and decreased life satisfaction due to the social isolation caused by the prolonged confinements, NH staff should be regularly informed on both preventive measures and mental health consequences of the pandemic, and should be trained for basic therapeutic interventions. Older adults should be supported to use telecommunication technologies to contact their families and friends, and participate in safe and accessible person‐centred activity programs.