IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v17y2020i18p6550-d410868.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Mental Health in Frontline Medical Workers during the 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease Epidemic in China: A Comparison with the General Population

Author

Listed:
  • Yiming Liang

    (CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
    Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Kankan Wu

    (CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
    Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Yongjie Zhou

    (Research Center for Psychological and Health Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China)

  • Xin Huang

    (CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
    Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

  • Yueyue Zhou

    (CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
    Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

  • Zhengkui Liu

    (CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
    Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

Abstract

Background: Since December 2019, China has been affected by a severe outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Frontline medical workers experienced difficulty due to the high risk of being infected and long and distressing work shifts. The current study aims to evaluate psychological symptoms in frontline medical workers during the COVID-19 epidemic in China and to perform a comparison with the general population. Methods: An online survey was conducted from 14 February 2020 to 29 March 2020. A total of 899 frontline medical workers and 1104 respondents in the general population participated. Depression, anxiety, insomnia, and resilience were assessed via the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7), Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), and abbreviated Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC-10), respectively. Results: Overall, 30.43%, 20.29%, and 14.49% of frontline medical workers in Hubei Province and 23.13%, 13.14%, and 10.64% of frontline medical workers in other regions reported symptoms of depression, anxiety, and insomnia, respectively. In addition, 23.33%, 16.67%, and 6.67% of the general population in Hubei Province and 18.25%, 9.22%, and 7.17% of the general population in other regions reported symptoms of depression, anxiety, and insomnia, respectively. The resilience of frontline medical staff outside Hubei Province was higher than that of the general population outside Hubei Province. Conclusion: A large proportion of frontline medical workers and the general public experienced psychological symptoms during the COVID-19 outbreak. Psychological services for frontline medical workers and the general public are needed.

Suggested Citation

  • Yiming Liang & Kankan Wu & Yongjie Zhou & Xin Huang & Yueyue Zhou & Zhengkui Liu, 2020. "Mental Health in Frontline Medical Workers during the 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease Epidemic in China: A Comparison with the General Population," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-12, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:18:p:6550-:d:410868
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/18/6550/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/18/6550/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Cuiyan Wang & Riyu Pan & Xiaoyang Wan & Yilin Tan & Linkang Xu & Cyrus S. Ho & Roger C. Ho, 2020. "Immediate Psychological Responses and Associated Factors during the Initial Stage of the 2019 Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Epidemic among the General Population in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(5), pages 1-25, March.
    2. Yingfei Zhang & Zheng Feei Ma, 2020. "Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Mental Health and Quality of Life among Local Residents in Liaoning Province, China: A Cross-Sectional Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-12, March.
    3. Paweł Wańkowicz & Aleksandra Szylińska & Iwona Rotter, 2020. "Assessment of Mental Health Factors among Health Professionals Depending on Their Contact with COVID-19 Patients," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(16), pages 1-8, August.
    4. Lourdes Luceño-Moreno & Beatriz Talavera-Velasco & Yolanda García-Albuerne & Jesús Martín-García, 2020. "Symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress, Anxiety, Depression, Levels of Resilience and Burnout in Spanish Health Personnel during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(15), pages 1-29, July.
    5. Raffaele Palladino & Jordy Bollon & Luca Ragazzoni & Francesco Barone-Adesi, 2020. "Excess Deaths and Hospital Admissions for COVID-19 Due to a Late Implementation of the Lockdown in Italy," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(16), pages 1-6, August.
    6. Cristina Mazza & Eleonora Ricci & Silvia Biondi & Marco Colasanti & Stefano Ferracuti & Christian Napoli & Paolo Roma, 2020. "A Nationwide Survey of Psychological Distress among Italian People during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Immediate Psychological Responses and Associated Factors," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(9), pages 1-14, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Williams, Shanna & Bruer, Kaila C. & Evans, Angela D. & Price, Heather L., 2022. "The impact of COVID-19 on Canadian child maltreatment workers," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    2. Gloria Obuobi-Donkor & Ejemai Eboreime & Reham Shalaby & Belinda Agyapong & Folajinmi Oluwasina & Medard Adu & Ernest Owusu & Wanying Mao & Vincent I. O. Agyapong, 2022. "Evaluating the Prevalence and Predictors of Moderate to Severe Depression in Fort McMurray, Canada during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(12), pages 1-15, June.
    3. Maryam Masoumi & Kamyar Shokraee & Somayeh Mohammadi & Soroush Moradi & Mohammad Bagherzade & Javad Balasi & Abbas Smiley, 2021. "Sleep Duration as the Main Indicator of Self-Rated Wellness and Health among Healthcare Workers Involved in the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(1), pages 1-10, December.
    4. Ieva Norkiene & Lina Jovarauskaite & Monika Kvedaraite & Encarl Uppal & Mandeep Kaur Phull & Heidi Chander & Kathryn Halford & Evaldas Kazlauskas, 2021. "‘Should I Stay, or Should I Go?’ Psychological Distress Predicts Career Change Ideation among Intensive Care Staff in Lithuania and the UK Amid COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-9, March.
    5. Mohd Noor Norhayati & Ruhana Che Yusof & Mohd Yacob Azman, 2021. "Prevalence of Psychological Impacts on Healthcare Providers during COVID-19 Pandemic in Asia," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-15, August.
    6. Ahmed Yassin & Abdel-Hameed Al-Mistarehi & Khalid El-Salem & Reema A. Karasneh & Sayer Al-Azzam & Aref A. Qarqash & Aws G. Khasawneh & Anas M. Zein Alaabdin & Ola Soudah, 2022. "Prevalence Estimates and Risk Factors of Anxiety among Healthcare Workers in Jordan over One Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(5), pages 1-20, February.
    7. Yu-Yin Lin & Yu-An Pan & Yi-Ling Hsieh & Meng-Hsuan Hsieh & Yun-Shiuan Chuang & Hsiu-Yi Hsu & Ya-Hsiu Huang & Chia-En Hsu & Yi-Chen Cheng & Shih-Feng Cho & Chao-Ling Wang, 2021. "COVID-19 Pandemic Is Associated with an Adverse Impact on Burnout and Mood Disorder in Healthcare Professionals," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(7), pages 1-12, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. María del Carmen Olmos-Gómez, 2020. "Sex and Careers of University Students in Educational Practices as Factors of Individual Differences in Learning Environment and Psychological Factors during COVID-19," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(14), pages 1-19, July.
    2. Federica Andrei & Giacomo Mancini & Francesca Agostini & Maria Stella Epifanio & Marco Andrea Piombo & Martina Riolo & Vittoria Spicuzza & Erica Neri & Rosa Lo Baido & Sabina La Grutta & Elena Trombin, 2022. "Quality of Life and Job Loss during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Mediation by Hopelessness and Moderation by Trait Emotional Intelligence," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(5), pages 1-12, February.
    3. Sunhee Kim & Seoyong Kim, 2021. "Who Is Suffering from the “Corona Blues”? An Analysis of the Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Depression and Its Implications for Health Policy," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(23), pages 1-21, November.
    4. J. Pierre Zila-Velasque & Pamela Grados-Espinoza & Naomi Coba-Villan & Jocelyn Quispe-Chamorro & Yesenia F. Taipe-Guillén & Estefany Pacheco & Laura Ccasa-Valero & Virgilio E. Failoc-Rojas & Cristian , 2022. "Mental Disorders and Level of Resilience in Eight High-Altitude Cities of Peru during the Second Pandemic Wave: A Multicenter Population-Based Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(1), pages 1-19, December.
    5. Ankica Kosic & Tamara Džamonja Ignjatović & Nebojša Petrović, 2021. "A Cross-Cultural Study of Distress during COVID-19 Pandemic: Some Protective and Risk Factors," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(14), pages 1-15, July.
    6. Christian M. Hafner, 2020. "The Spread of the Covid-19 Pandemic in Time and Space," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(11), pages 1-13, May.
    7. Stefania Scuri & Marina Tesauro & Fabio Petrelli & Ninfa Argento & Genny Damasco & Giovanni Cangelosi & Cuc Thi Thu Nguyen & Demetris Savva & Iolanda Grappasonni, 2022. "Use of an Online Platform to Evaluate the Impact of Social Distancing Measures on Psycho-Physical Well-Being in the COVID-19 Era," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(11), pages 1-10, June.
    8. Lucía del Río-Casanova & Milagrosa Sánchez-Martín & Ana García-Dantas & Anabel González-Vázquez & Ania Justo, 2021. "Psychological Responses According to Gender during the Early Stage of COVID-19 in Spain," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(7), pages 1-20, April.
    9. Mateusz Ciski & Krzysztof Rząsa, 2023. "Multiscale Geographically Weighted Regression in the Investigation of Local COVID-19 Anomalies Based on Population Age Structure in Poland," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(10), pages 1-23, May.
    10. Yang Yang & Keqiao Liu & Siqi Li & Man Shu, 2020. "Social Media Activities, Emotion Regulation Strategies, and Their Interactions on People’s Mental Health in COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(23), pages 1-16, December.
    11. José Pais-Ribeiro & Alexandra Ferreira-Valente & Margarida Jarego & Elisabet Sánchez-Rodríguez & Jordi Miró, 2022. "COVID-19 Pandemic in Portugal: Psychosocial and Health-Related Factors Associated with Psychological Discomfort," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(6), pages 1-13, March.
    12. Edmond Pui Hang Choi & Bryant Pui Hung Hui & Eric Yuk Fai Wan & Jojo Yan Yan Kwok & Tiffany Hei Lam Tam & Chanchan Wu, 2021. "COVID-19 and Health-Related Quality of Life: A Community-Based Online Survey in Hong Kong," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-12, March.
    13. Juan Gómez-Salgado & Montserrat Andrés-Villas & Sara Domínguez-Salas & Diego Díaz-Milanés & Carlos Ruiz-Frutos, 2020. "Related Health Factors of Psychological Distress During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Spain," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(11), pages 1-16, June.
    14. Daniela Marchetti & Roberta Maiella & Rocco Palumbo & Melissa D’Ettorre & Irene Ceccato & Marco Colasanti & Adolfo Di Crosta & Pasquale La Malva & Emanuela Bartolini & Daniela Biasone & Nicola Mammare, 2023. "Self-Reported Mental Health and Psychosocial Correlates during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Data from the General Population in Italy," Data, MDPI, vol. 8(6), pages 1-7, June.
    15. Marwah Ahmed Behisi & Hussain M. Altaweel & Reham F. Gassas & Mansour Aldehaiman & Abdulmajeed A. Alkhamees, 2021. "COVID-19 Pandemic and Mental Health Status of Saudi Citizens Living Abroad," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(15), pages 1-17, July.
    16. Lara Guedes de Pinho & Francisco Sampaio & Carlos Sequeira & Laetitia Teixeira & César Fonseca & Manuel José Lopes, 2021. "Portuguese Nurses’ Stress, Anxiety, and Depression Reduction Strategies during the COVID-19 Outbreak," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(7), pages 1-11, March.
    17. Mohammad Farhan Al. Qudah & Ismael Salamah Albursan & Heba Ibraheem Hammad & Ahmad Mohammad Alzoubi & Salaheldin Farah Bakhiet & Abdullah M. Almanie & Soltan S. Alenizi & Suliman S. Aljomaa & Mohammed, 2021. "Anxiety about COVID-19 Infection, and Its Relation to Smartphone Addiction and Demographic Variables in Middle Eastern Countries," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-14, October.
    18. Eriona Thartori & Concetta Pastorelli & Flavia Cirimele & Chiara Remondi & Maria Gerbino & Emanuele Basili & Ainzara Favini & Carolina Lunetti & Irene Fiasconaro & Gian Vittorio Caprara, 2021. "Exploring the Protective Function of Positivity and Regulatory Emotional Self-Efficacy in Time of Pandemic COVID-19," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(24), pages 1-19, December.
    19. Fang-Yi Tsai & Hannah Schillok & Michaela Coenen & Christina Merkel & Caroline Jung-Sievers & on behalf of the COSMO Study Group, 2022. "The Well-Being of the German Adult Population Measured with the WHO-5 over Different Phases of the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Analysis within the COVID-19 Snapshot Monitoring Study (COSMO)," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(6), pages 1-27, March.
    20. Anna Maria Cybulska & Katarzyna Głębicka & Marzanna Stanisławska & Aneta Cymbaluk-Płoska & Elżbieta Grochans & Kamila Rachubińska, 2023. "The Relationship between Social Support and Mental Health Problems of Peri- and Postmenopausal Women during the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-14, January.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:18:p:6550-:d:410868. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.