Psychological distress surveillance and related impact analysis of hospital staff during the COVID-19 epidemic in Chongqing, China

BACKGROUND: Hospital staff are vulnerable and at high risk of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infection. The aim of this study was to monitor the psychological distress in hospital staff and examine the relationship between the psychological distress and possible causes during the COVID-19 epidemic. METHODS: An online survey was conducted from February 1 to February 14, 2020. Hospital staff from five national COVID-19 designated hospitals in Chongqing participated. Data collected included demographics and stress responses to COVID-19: 1) the impact of event scale to measure psychological stress reactions; 2) generalized anxiety disorder 7 to measure anxiety symptoms; 3) Patient Health Questionnaire 9 to measure depression symptoms; 4) Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale to measure obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCS); and 5) Patient Health Questionnaire 15 to measure somatization symptoms. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors that were correlated with psychological distress. RESULTS: Hospital staff that participated in this study were identified as either doctors or nurses. A total of 456 respondents completed the questionnaires with a response rate of 91.2%. The mean age was 30.67 ± 7.48 years (range, 17 to 64 years). Of all respondents, 29.4% were men. Of the staff surveyed, 43.2% had stress reaction syndrome. The highest prevalence of psychological distress was OCS (37.5%), followed by somatization symptoms (33.3%), anxiety symptoms (31.6%), and depression symptoms (29.6%). Univariate analyses indicated that female subjects, middle aged subjects, subjects in the low income group, and subjects working in isolation wards were prone to experience psychological distress. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed “Reluctant to work or considered resignation” (odds ratio [OR], 5.192; 95%CI, 2.396–11.250; P < .001), “Afraid to go home because of fear of infecting family” (OR, 2.099; 95%CI, 1.299–3.391; P = .002) “Uncertainty about frequent modification of infection and control procedures” (OR, 1.583; 95%CI, 1.061–2.363; P = .025), and“Social support” (OR, 1.754; 95%CI, 1.041–2.956; P = .035) were correlated with psychological reactions. “Reluctant to work or considered resignation” and “Afraid to go home because of fear of infecting family” were associated with a higher risk of symptoms of Anxiety (OR, 3.622; 95% CI, 1.882–6.973; P < .001; OR, 1.803; 95% CI, 1.069–3.039; P = .027), OCS (OR, 5.241; 95% CI, 2.545–10.793; P < .001; OR, 1.999; 95% CI, 1.217–3.282; P = .006) and somatization (OR, 5.177; 95% CI, 2.595–10.329; P < .001; OR, 1.749; 95% CI, 1.051–2.91; P = .031). “Stigmatization and rejection in neighborhood because of hospital work”, “Reluctant to work or considered resignation” and “Uncertainty about frequent modification of infection and control procedures” were associated with a higher risk of symptoms of Depression(OR, 2.297; 95% CI, 1.138–4.637; P = .020; OR, 3.134; 95% CI, 1.635–6.006; P = .001; OR, 1.645; 95% CI, 1.075–2.517; P = .022). CONCLUSIONS: Hospital staff showed different prevalence of psychological distress during the COVID-19 epidemic. Our study confirmed the severity of negative psychological distress on hospital staff and identified factors associated with negative psychological distress that can be used to provide valuable information for psychological interventions to improve the mental health of vulnerable groups during the COVID-19 epidemic.