Mental Health Status of the General Public, Frontline, and Non-frontline Healthcare Providers in the Early Stage of COVID-19

Background: The outbreak of COVID-19 occurred in 2020 which resulted in high levels of psychological stress in both the general public and healthcare providers. Purpose: The study aimed to address the mental health status of people in China in the early stage of the COVID-19 outbreak, and to identify differences among the general public, frontline, and non-frontline healthcare providers. Method: A cross-sectional study was used to identify the mental health status of the general public and healthcare providers between Jan 29 and Feb 11, 2020. Data were collected using an online survey from a convenience sample. The instruments used included: Patient Health Questionnaire, Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale, Insomnia Severity Index, and Impact of Event Scale-Revised. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the data. Kruskal-Wallis H tests were performed to assess differences in measurements among the three groups; P < 0.05 (two-sided) was considered to be statistically significant. Results: Results showed that a majority of participants experienced post-traumatic stress (68.8%), depression (46.1%), anxiety (39.8%), and insomnia (31.4%). Significant changes in the mental health status of frontline providers was found as compared to those of the other groups (P < 0.001). Interestingly, the scores of the general public were significantly higher than those of the non-frontline healthcare providers (P < 0.001). Conclusion: These findings provide information to evaluate outbreak associated psychological stress for the general public and healthcare providers, and assist in providing professional support and actionable guidance to ease psychological stress and improve mental health.