Depression in healthcare workers during COVID-19 pandemic: results from Czech arm of HEROES Study

Abstract

The pandemic due to COVID-19 brought new risks for depression of health care workers, which may have differently influenced men and women. We aimed to investigate (1) whether health care workers in Czechia experienced an increase in depression during the COVID-19 pandemic, (2) which factors contributed the most to this change, and (3) whether the magnitude of the associations differed by gender. We studied 2564 participants of the Czech arm of the international COVID-19 HEalth caRe wOrkErS (HEROES) Study. Online questionnaire was administered to health care workers in summer 2020 (wave 0) and spring 2021 (wave 1). Depression was defined by reaching 10 or more points on the Patient Health Questionnaire. Logistic regression investigated the association of participant´s characteristics with depression and multivariable decomposition for non-linear models assessed, to what extent the characteristic explained the change in depression occurrence. The prevalence of depression increased twice during the pandemic (11% in wave 0 and 22% in wave 1). Stress accounted for 50% of the difference, experience of death due to COVID-19 for 15% and contact with COVID-19 patients for 14%. Greater resilience and sufficient personal protective equipment were strongly associated with lower occurrence of depression. The protective association of resilience with depression was stronger in men than in women. We conclude that interventions to promote mental health of health care workers in future health crisis should aim at decreasing stress and enhancing resilience. They should be delivered especially to individuals who have contact with the affected patients and may face their death.

Comparison of the Psychological Impact of COVID-19 on Healthcare Workers between 2022 and 2023 in a Romanian COVID-19 Hub Hospital

“…Many studies reported the prolonged negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on HCWs mental health in the first year [15][16][17].…”

“…Fewer studies followed the progression of anxiety, depression, and stress among HCWs as the pandemic continued [15][16][17].…”

Association Between Suboptimal Health Status and Health-Related Productivity Loss in Primary Healthcare Workers in China: a Cross-Sectional Survey

“…56 Previous studies found that female healthcare workers tend to develop greater physical and emotional stress during COVID-19, and physicians had a higher resilience compared to nurses due to general medical knowledge, education, and training for swift respond to emergencies. [57][58][59][60] Therefore, physicians are better at dealing with poor social adaptation and feelings of isolation, which mitigates the HRPL.…”