COVID-19-Related Self-Stigma, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Insomnia, and Smartphone Addiction Among Frontline Government Workers with COVID-19 Pandemic Control Duties

Abstract

Purpose The duties related to COVID-19 control and prevention may have caused psychological stress for the individuals in charge (eg, frontline government workers) and have reportedly led to mental health issues, such as insomnia and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, the prevalence of these COVID-19-related disorders and their associated factors remain unclear. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to investigate the prevalence rates of insomnia, PTSD, COVID-19-related self-stigma, and smartphone addiction, along with the identification of risk factors and protective factors for Taiwan frontline government workers with COVID-19 pandemic control duties. Methods The survey was carried out with 151 participants between September and October 2021. All participants completed the Fear of COVID-19 Scale (assessing fear of COVID-19), Self-Stigma Scale (assessing self-stigma during the COVID-19 pandemic), Smartphone Application-Based Addiction Scale (assessing the risk of smartphone addiction), Insomnia Severity Index (assessing insomnia), Impacts of Event Scale-6 (assessing PTSD), and a self-designed set of questions assessing trait resilience. Results The results showed that the prevalence rate was 31.1% for insomnia and 33.8% for PTSD. Furthermore, service duration (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 0.93; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.86, 0.999) and trait resilience (AOR = 0.19; 95% CI = 0.08, 0.46) were protective factors and fear of COVID-19 (AOR = 1.91; 95% CI = 1.02, 3.57) was a risk factor for insomnia. Fear of COVID-19 (AOR = 2.63; 95% CI = 1.35, 5.14), self-stigma (AOR = 3.62; 95% CI = 1.19, 11.02), and smartphone addiction (AOR = 1.09, 95% CI = 1.001, 1.19) were risk factors, and trait resilience was a protective factor (AOR = 0.58; 95% CI = 0.29, 1.17) for PTSD. Conclusion The findings demonstrated a high prevalence of insomnia and PTSD. Risk-reducing strategies and protective factor promotion strategies are recommended to help reduce the symptoms of insomnia and PTSD among Taiwan frontline government workers.

The effect of social support and resource support on emotional exhaustion, insomnia, and suicidal ideation among allied health trainees and post-graduate year doctors in Taiwan

“…The reason why AHTs and PGYDs may be more vulnerable to public’s stigmatization is because that they may lack the experience to deal with the stigmatized situation. One study reported that service duration of frontline government workers with pandemic control duty acted as a protective factor for insomnia due to their greater experience in stressful situations [ 6 ]. In addition, close relatives may put stress on the AHTs and PGYDs by worrying about the uncertainty and risk of their job duties, which could also cause a double stigmatization [ 2 , 19 ].…”

“…Unfriendly opinions held by others may cause perceived stigma, and internalization by affected individuals can result in self-stigma [ 3 ]. Research has shown that stigmatization can be provoked by worldwide or regional pandemics and epidemics [ 4 , 5 ] and may be experienced by anyone exposed to higher infection risk [ 6 ]. Healthcare workers often experience stigma due to the nature of their work [ 4 ] which adds extra stress to the lives of an occupational cohort that already experience many stressors not experienced in other professions.…”

“…Stigmatized individuals can suffer great emotional pressure which can result in psychological distress such as depression and anxiety [ 8 ]. Such psychological distress due to stigmatization may further elicit negative psychosocial consequences such as post-traumatic stress disorder, sleep disorders and/or addictive behaviors [ 6 ]. Moreover, in the particular context of COVID-19, stigmatized individuals may stay away from their families to avoid unnecessary transmission risk [ 7 ], resulting in emotional isolation and further exacerbating the psychological impact [ 9 ].…”

Perceived risk of COVID-19 hurts mental health: the mediating role of fear of COVID-19 and the moderating role of resilience

“…Depression and anxiety are prevalent mental distress that individuals commonly experience during the pandemic and the levels of distress may be dramatically elevated [ 1 – 4 ]. At all phase of COVID-19, a surge in mental health problems (e.g., depression and anxiety) were observed among various population such as infected people, healthcare workers, and the general population [ 5 – 14 ]. For instance, a meta-analysis including 66 studies indicated that during the COVID-19 pandemic, the pooled prevalence of depression among infected individuals, healthcare workers, and the general population was 41.7%, 31.0%, and 31.5%, respectively; the pooled prevalence of anxiety among these population was 42.3%, 29.8%, and 29.0%, respectively [ 8 ].…”

Psychological Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Nursing Students: Palestinian Perspective

“…The world's economy, politics, health, and education have all been put at risk by COVID-19 ( Huang et al, 2022 ; Kar et al, 2023 ; Khankeh et al, 2022 ; Kukreti et al, 2023 ; Liu et al, 2022 ; Prasiska et al, 2022 ). University students from several countries have been significantly impacted by the epidemic; according to UNESCO, 60% of students worldwide have been placed under national lockdowns ( Patelarou et al, 2021 ).…”