Socio-psychological Study of COVID-19 Pandemic among Healthcare Workers in a Medical College of Nepal: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

INTRODUCTION: Health care workers experienced considerable psychological distress as a result of COVID-19 due to providing direct patient care, quarantine or self-isolation, and lockdown experience. They are front line workers handling the patients and are at greater risk than others. This study aims to determine the socio-psychological impact of COVID-19 pandemic among Nepalese Army Institute of Health Sciences health care workers. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study from different institutions of the Nepalese Army Institute of Health Sciences from May 2020 to July 2020 was conducted. Ethical approval was taken from the Institutional Review Committee, Nepalese Army Institute of Health Sciences. A total of 212 responses were collected through Google form along with the Depression, anxiety, stress and scale-21 to assess the level of Depression, Anxiety, and Stress. Analysis of the data was done using SPSS version 22. RESULTS: Respondents with extremely severe depression, anxiety, and stress was found to be 16 (7.5%), 24 (11.3%), and 4 (1.95%) respectively. Most of the respondents do not have travel history, but 6 (2.8%) and 28 (13.2%) have direct and indirect contact respectively with the COVID patients. Daily activities such as food intake, the workload at home, and relationships with family members were increased. 208 (98%) have followed preventive measures such as mouth mask, hand washes, and physical distance. CONCLUSIONS: COVID-19 pandemic has imposed a significant level of depression, anxiety, and stress on health care workers caring for infected patients, with their main concern being the risk of transmitting the infection to their families or acquiring it themselves.