Prevalence, risk factors, and clinical correlates of anxiety, depression, and sleep disorders in chaperones for children in the emergency department in China during COVID-19

The outbreak of novel coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan, Hubei Province, in 2019 and its rapid spread across the country caused severe public panic in China. The purpose of this study was to investigate the mental health problems of children’s chaperones at the emergency clinic during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak and to analyze the related influencing factors. A total of 260 chaperones for children in the emergency department participated in this cross-sectional study through the questionnaire constellation platform. The survey period was from February to June 2021. Information collected included demographic data and mental health scales. The Self-Assessment Scale for Anxiety, the Self-Rating Scale for Depression, and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index assessed anxiety, depression, and sleep quality, respectively. Logistic regression was used to analyze influential factors associated with mental health problems. The prevalence of depression, anxiety, and sleep disorders among family members accompanying children attending the emergency room was 41.54%, 20.00%, and 93.08%, respectively, with 21.54% of family members suffering from moderate sleep disorders. Univariate analysis showed that being in Wuhan or not during the city closure (X(2) = 8.61, P < .01) was strongly associated with the occurrence of depression; female (X(2) = 4.87, P = .03), working or not (X(2) = 6.39, P = .01) and fear of going to the hospital (X(2) = 7.80, P = .01) were key factors for the occurrence of anxiety symptoms; Knowledge of transmission routes and prevention of COVID-19 (X(2) = 12.56, P = .03) was a key factor for sleep disorders; logistic stepwise regression analysis showed that fear of going to the hospital was a risk factor for anxiety symptoms (odds ratio = 2.51, P < .01, 95% confidence interval = 1.30–4.85). Our findings suggest that mental health problems were prevalent among family members accompanying children attending the emergency department during the COVID-19 outbreak, with a high prevalence of sleep disturbances in particular. Relevant factors included presence or absence in Wuhan during the outbreak closure, gender, work or absence, and fear of hospital visits. There is a need to focus on the mental health distress of the chaperones for children in the emergency department, and to provide timely intervention and diversion.