Impact of COVID-19 on psychology of nurses working in the emergency and fever outpatient:A cross-sectional survey

Abstract

Background COVID-19 poses a great challenge to the global health system. The nurses of emergency and fever outpatient (EFO) act as gatekeepers to the health care system in the public health response to COVID-19 epidemic. This study examined the psychological impact of COVID-19 upon EFO nurses in Chinese hospitals. Methods In midmonth of February, 2020, convenience sampling was used to recruit EFO nurses from hospitals in Jiangsu Province. Data were obtained by self-administered online questionnaires, which consisted of a general questionnaire, the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale, Perceived Stress Scale-14 and Simplified Coping Style Questionnaire. A total of 481 questionnaires were returned and 453 valid questionnaires were recovered. Multiple linear regression was used to explore the influence of socio-psychological and working condition factors on anxiety, stress and stress coping tendency. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated to assess the associations among anxiety, stress and coping tendency. Results Among the participants, 281(62.03%) had no anxiety symptoms, 154(34.00%) had mild anxiety, 16(3.53%) had moderate anxiety, and 2(0.44%) had severe anxiety. There were 146(32.23%) participants with scores greater than 25 in the PSS, indicating excessive stress. We found that 229(50.55%) participants were more likely to respond positively to stress, while 224(49.45%) were more likely to respond negatively. The models we used included gender, fear of infecting family members, regretting being a nurse, having children, confidence in fighting outbreak, rest time, professional attitudes, having attended infection prevention training, and number of night shifts; and they were all predictors of the mental health of EFO nurses. Pearson correlation showed a positive correlation of the anxiety with stress score (r=0.443, P<0.001), while the coping tendency score was found negatively correlated with anxiety (r=-0.268, P< 0.001) and stress (r=-0.503, P< 0.001). Conclusion COVID-19 has a certain psychosocial impact upon EFO nurses. Effective measures, such as strengthening protection training, adequate nurses for emergency and fever clinics, reducing night shifts, and timely updates of latest epidemic situation, should be taken. Moreover, greater attention should be paid to female EFO nurses and nurses with children.

The Psychological Impact of COVID-19 Outbreak on Nurses Working in the Northwest of Amhara Regional State Referral Hospitals, Northwest Ethiopia

“…The current study revealed that 69.6%, 55.3%, and 20.5% of the respondents experienced anxiety, depression, and stress respectively in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The prevalence of anxiety in this study was higher than studies conducted in Jiangsu Province; China; 37.9%, 22 China; 46.04, 23 Jinzhong, Shanxi Province, China; 39%, 24 Wuhan china; 24.1%, 25 China; 54.4%, 26 Spain; 58.6%, 27 Jordan; 42.4%, 28 New York; 40%, 29 Singapore; 14.5%, 30 and Guangdong China; 55.4%. 31 The possible justification for this difference might be due to the difference in socioeconomic, cultural, and environmental factors such as attitudes, lack of adequate equipment like personal protective equipment and resources contribute to coping with the psychological crisis of the pandemic.…”

“…The prevalence of stress in this study is consistent with studies conducted in Guangdong, China; 24.7%. 31 However, the finding of this study was lower than studies conducted in Jiangsu Province, China; 32.23%, 22 Jinzhong, Shanxi Province, China; 49.1%, 24 Wuhan, China; 29.8%, 25 multiple centers in China; 28%, 26 Jordan; 50.1%, 28 and New York; 64%. 29 The possible reason for this difference might be due to the difference in the study period in which feelings when the COVID-19 pandemic first appears and overtime may vary.…”

“…This finding was supported by studies conducted in Jiangsu Province; China and Spain. 22,27 This might be due to one of the greatest fears of health personnel during the pandemic is the possibility of infecting others, specifically family members. 33 As a result, those nurses who are worried about infecting family members have a higher risk of developing anxiety.…”

“…This finding was supported by a study conducted in Jiangsu Province; China. 22 This might be due to working at night shift that can make nurses lose the sense of control in their life, produce the feeling of powerless, cause insomnia, and other psychological problems including stress. 38 Those study participants who did not take training on infection prevention were nearly three times at higher risk of experiencing stress compared with their counterparts.…”

“…This finding was supported by a study conducted in Jiangsu Province; China. 22 This might be due to the reason that inadequate training on infection prevention, lack of knowledge, and unclear specific tasks increased the risk of developing stress during a pandemic. 39 Training can help to understand the nature of diseases, standardize protection measures, enhance confidence, and improve compliance with infection control measures, thus reducing the risk of developing stress.…”