The Association of Experienced Long Working Hours and Depression, Anxiety, and Suicidal Ideation Among Chinese Medical Residents During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Multi-Center Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background Long working hours are common among medical residents and may increase the risk of mental disorders. We aimed to investigate the association between experienced long working hours and depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation among Chinese medical residents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods This study was conducted in September 2022; 1343 residents from three center in Northeastern China were included in the final analysis (effective response rate: 87.61%). The data were collected from participants via online self-administered questionnaires. Depression and anxiety were measured by the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and the General Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) scale, respectively. Adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were determined after adjusting for potential confounders by binary unconditional logistic regression. Results The effective response rate was 87.61%. Among the 1343 participants, 12.88% (173), 9.90% (133), and 9.68% (130) had experienced major depression, major anxiety, and suicidal ideation, respectively. We found that longer weekly worktime increased the risk of major depression, particularly in those who worked for more than 60 hours per week (≥ 61 hours vs ≤ 40 hours, OR=1.87, P for trend = 0.003). However, this trend was not observed for either major anxiety or suicidal ideation ( P for trend > 0.05 for both). Conclusion This study revealed that there was a considerable incidence of poor mental health among medical residents; furthermore, the longer weekly worktime was associated with a higher risk of major depression, especially for those who worked more than 60 hours per week, but this association was not observed in either major anxiety or suicidal ideation. This may help policymakers to develop targeted interventions.

Occupational, academic, and personal determinants of wellbeing and psychological distress in residents: results of a survey in Lyon, France

“…In a previous study, it was found that working over 80 h per week increased the risk of depression among residents ( Awan et al, 2022 ). However, in contrast with previous findings ( Ogawa et al, 2018 ; Li et al, 2023 ), the BASIL study did not find a significant association between working hours and mental health status. This difference could be attributed to the fact that our study pertained to wellbeing and psychological distress rather than to depression.…”

Prevalence and factors associated with anxiety and depression among Chinese prison officers during the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic

“…Meanwhile, compared to the research conducted at the COVID-19 outbreak’s onset, our study’s results are also significantly higher than those of prison officers in China (33.43%) and in the United States (38, 32%), as mentioned above ( 24 , 25 ). Moreover, the mental health status of prison officers in this study was worse than that of other groups in China—including older adults, perinatal women, and medical residents ( 40 , 41 , 54 )—who were also evaluated during the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.…”

“…In this study, Cronbach’s α for the PHQ-9 was 0.947. A total score of ≥5 was adopted to identify individuals with the presence of mild to severe anxiety or depressive symptoms ( 40 , 41 ).…”