Prevalence of Psychological Disorders among Health Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND: Repeated contact with patients with COVID-19 and working in quarantine conditions has made health workers vulnerable to psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal of the present systematic review and meta-analysis was to examine the prevalence of the various psychological distresses among health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases were searched for access to papers examining psychological distress among healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Risk of bias was assessed using the Newcastle–Ottawa Scale (NOS). Heterogeneity among the studies was examined using the Cochran's Q test; because heterogeneity was significant, the random effects model was used to examine the prevalence of psychological distress. RESULTS: Overall, 12 studies with a total sample size of 5265 were eligible and included in the analysis. Prevalence rates of depression, anxiety, and PTSD were 20% (95% CI: 14–27), 23% (95% CI: 18–27), and 8% (95% CI: 6–9), respectively. The highest prevalence rates of depression and anxiety were related to the SDS and the GAD-7, respectively, and the lowest prevalence rates of the two aforementioned variables were related to the DASS-21. CONCLUSIONS: The high prevalence of psychological distress among healthcare workers during the COVID-19 epidemic can have negative effects on their health and the quality of services provided. Therefore, training coping strategies for psychological distress in this pandemic seems necessary.