European Journal of Molecular & Clinical Medicine

Abstract

Background: Healthcare workers (HCWs) are the frontline warriors in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and similar health crises. In developing countries, HCWs face high stress because they have to deal with the increased patient load and limited infrastructure. Long-term exposure to stress, anxiety, and depression may lead to impaired mental health in HCWs. It is, therefore, essential to assess the mental health of HCWs as a part of their annual health check-up. Objective: The present cross-sectional observational study was aimed to assess the mental health of HCWs by analysing the stress, anxiety and depression during their annual health check-up at a tertiary care hospital in North India. Methods: Total 200 participants, including the consultants, and junior and senior resident doctors, were included in the study. The stress level was analyzed using PSS-10, and anxiety and depression were analyzed using GAD-7 and PHQ-9 respectively. Results: The mean PSS-10 score was 9.39 ± 8.53, indicating low stress among HCWs; the mean GAD-7 score was 5.20 ± 4.19, indicating mild anxiety in HCWs and the mean PHQ-9 score was 3.41 ± 3.59, indicating minimal depression among HCWs. Conclusion: The present study revealed that the HCWs faced minimal to mild stress, anxiety, and depression. It is therefore recommended that the mental health check-up should be made a regular part of the annual health check-up in HCWs so that adequate, timely steps are taken to address the same.