The effects of the COVID-19 outbreak on physicians’ psychological resilience levels

ABSTRACT

Background

Health-care workers exposed to coronavirus19 disease could be psychologically stressed. The objective of this study is to assess the anxiety, depression levels, and psychological resilience of physicians working during the Covid-19 outbreak and to evaluate the related factors that are associated with their psychological resilience.

Methods

The sample of this descriptive study was composed of medical doctors and dentists. The data were obtained online between April 13–23, 2020 through a survey prepared by the researchers. In addition, a questionnaire about the participants’ sociodemographic characteristics, the Psychological Resilience Scale and Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HAD-A/HAD-D) was given.

Results

The average age of the 671 participants was 44.0 ± 9.0 years. Psychological resilience scores were significantly higher in those who had children, who had worked for 15 years or more, and who had received training about COVID-19 (p < 0.05). Depression scores were higher among women and in those who reported having a chronic disease, whose workload increased after the outbreak, and who had physical contact with COVID-positive patients. The anxiety scores were also higher among women and in those whose workload had increased and who had contact with COVID-positive patients (p < 0.05). The physicians with scores below the cutoff point on the HAD-D/HAD-A had significantly higher scores on the Psychological Resilience Scale (p < 0.05).

Discussion

Depression and anxiety levels were found to be significantly lower in physicians with greater psychological resilience. Psychological and social support of all health-care workers, especially physicians, is important in the struggle with the pandemic. It is thought that determining the variables related to psychological resilience in health-care workers will be a guide for psychosocial services.

KEYWORDS:

• Anxiety
• Covid-19
• depression
• psychological resilience
• physician

Acknowledgments

All the authors contributed equally in the work.

Declaration of interest

The contents of the paper and the opinions expressed within are those of the authors, and it was the decision of the authors to submit the manuscript for publication.

The authors report no conflicts of interest.

Reviewers disclosure

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Additional information

Funding

No funding was received to produce this article.