Mental health challenges faced by young medical residents fighting COVID-19 in tunisia

INTRODUCTION: COVID-19 pandemic affected not only physical health of individuals, and communities but also their mental health worldwide. Young physicians, who were providing care for patients during the outbreak in a global atmosphere of stress, anxiety and depression, were not spared. OBJECTIVES: To assess anxiety and depression among young medical resident exposed to COVID-19 in Tunisia and its associated factors METHODS: It was a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical online-based survey, from April 19, 2020, to May 5, 2020 on 180 medical residents in training, via a Google-Form link. We used a self-administered anonymous questionnaire containing sociodemographic and clinical data. Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HAD) validated in the Tunisian dialectal version was used to assess anxiety and depression. RESULTS: Among 180 young doctors included, 70.2% were female, 16% were married, 81.8% worked in a university Hospital and 51.1% were frontline caregivers involved in primary screening. Our study revealed that 66.1% of young medical residents were suffering from anxiety (severe anxiety: 28.9 %) and 61.7% of them from depression (severe depression: 29.1%). Anxiety disorder was correlated to female gender (p=0.008), being married (0.001), worse quality of sleep (p<10(-3)) and increased consumption of tea and coffee (p=0.012). Depression was associated to worse quality of sleep (p<10(-3)), lack of physical activity (p<10(-3)), shortage of personal protective equipment (p=0,027) and anxiety disorder (p<10(-3)). CONCLUSIONS: Our study indicated a high proportion of anxiety and depression among young doctors in training, needing systematic screening in order to prevent them.