Association between contact with a general practitioner and depressive symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown: a large community-based study in Hangzhou, China

OBJECTIVES: To determine the association of general practitioner (GP) contact with depressive symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown in China. DESIGN: In April 2020, a follow-up survey was conducted on the basis of a baseline survey conducted between October 2018 and May 2019. SETTING: The survey was embedded in the Stanford Wellness Living Laboratory-China (WELL China) study, an ongoing prospective community-based cohort study during 2018–2019. PARTICIPANTS: The survey was conducted by telephone interview among 4144 adult urban residents participating in the WELL China study at baseline. We collected information on sociodemographic characteristics, depressive symptoms and GP contact during the lockdown period (February to March 2020). PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Depressive symptoms were measured using the WHO-Five Well-being Index, comprising five questionnaire items that briefly indicate psychological well-being. Logistic regression models were applied to assess the association between GP contact and depressive symptoms. RESULTS: In total, 3356 participants responded to the survey; 203 were excluded owing to missing data on depressive symptoms, leaving 3153 participants in the present study. During lockdown, 449 participants had GP contact. GP contact was significantly negatively associated with prevalent depressive symptoms (OR, 0.67; 95% CI 0.51 to 0.89; p<0.01) and incident depressive symptoms (OR 0.68; 95% CI 0.51 to 0.93; p<0.05). Stratified analysis showed a significant negative association between depressive symptoms and GP contact in individuals who were 45–64 years old (p<0.01), had a middle or high education (p<0.01) and had self-reported non-communicable diseases (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Contact with GPs during the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns may have a negative association with depressive symptoms in community-dwelling populations. Given the possibility of further surges in COVID-19 infections, GPs’ contact in the community should be enhanced.