PTSD Among Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Outbreak: A Study Raises Concern for Non-medical Staff in Low-Risk Areas

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of sleep quality and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms of healthcare workers (HCWs) and identify the determinants for PTSD symptoms among HCWs in high-risk and low-risk areas during the COVID-19 outbreak in China.Methods: The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and the Impact of Event Scale were used to assess sleep quality and symptoms of PTSD of 421 Chinese HCWs, respectively, from January 30 to March 2, 2020. The influencing factors of PTSD symptoms were identified by univariate analysis and multiple regression.Results: The incidence of HCWs getting PTSD symptoms were 13.2%. HCWs from high-risk areas had significantly poorer sleep quality (p < 0.001). Poor sleep quality was the risk factor of PTSD symptoms for HCWs from high-risk (p = 0.018) and low-risk areas (p < 0.001). Furthermore, non-medical staff were found to be the risk factor for PTSD symptoms only in low-risk areas.Discussion: HCWs in Hubei had poorer sleep quality. Non-medical HCWs from low-risk areas were associated with more severe PTSD symptoms. Mental health programs should be considered for HCWs, especially those who are often overlooked.

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“…Unsurprisingly, our research participants reported fall in job enjoyment during the COVID-19 pandemic, compared to their recall of pre-pandemic job enjoyment. This was a consistent finding for all of the staff surveyed and echo similar findings in a number of international studies (41)(42)(43). One study conducted by the British Medical Association (BMA) found that 59% of doctors described their level of exhaustion from work during the pandemic as "higher than normal" in October 2020, despite the ease of the pandemic restriction (44).…”

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