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Risk Perception and Psychosocial Impact During the Early Period of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Healthcare Workers
- Chau Sian Lim, Brian See, David Choon Liang Teo, Michelle Su Qing Tan, Norasyikin Hassan, Augustine Tee
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- Journal:
- BJPsych Open / Volume 9 / Issue S1 / July 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 07 July 2023, pp. S57-S58
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Aims
This study sought to elucidate the occupational health risk perception and psychological impact during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare workers in a general hospital in Singapore, and factors that influenced risk perception and psychological impact.
MethodsHealthcare workers from a general hospital in Singapore were invited to participate in an online survey in June 2020. It posed questions on demographic and occupational information (age, gender, nationality, marital status, profession, working area, length of working experience in healthcare), 20 items on occupational health risk perception and psychological impact of COVID-19, and the Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21).
The 20 items were adapted from a previous study during the 2003 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak and designed to assess participants’ perceived exposure risk, risk acceptance, families’ perception, stigmatisation, feelings of appreciation, workload, and perceived effectiveness of workplace protective measures. Participants’ responses were obtained on a 6-point Likert scale (strongly agree, agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, disagree, strongly disagree).
For data analysis, responses on occupational risk perception were regrouped into three levels. Depression, anxiety, and stress scores were categorised into quartiles. Ordinal logistics regression was used to compare the association of occupational risk perception with DASS-21 scores, and demographic factors with occupational risk perception. Variables that showed statistical significance (set at P <0.05) in univariate analysis were included in the multivariate ordinal logistics regression model to identify independent predictors.
ResultsThere were 1252 respondents (92 doctors, 661 nurses, 318 allied health professionals, 181 administrative and support personnel). 85% felt an increased risk of exposure to COVID-19 while 90% accepted the risk as part of their jobs. Stigmatisation against healthcare workers was present, with 45% reported they were shunned and 21% reported their families were avoided. 78% experienced increased workload. Fortunately, most (94%) found workplace protective measures adequate, and felt appreciated by their employer (87%) and society (81%).
Increased perception of occupational health risk was significantly associated with nursing profession, workers in patient-facing areas, and staff with shortest working experience in healthcare.
The mean DASS-21 scores were 9.2 (borderline normal) for Depression, 8.5 (borderline mild) for Anxiety, and 10.9 (normal) for Stress. Increased DASS-21 scores were significantly associated with greater occupational risk perception, younger age, and less years of working experience.
ConclusionOccupational risk perception amid the early COVID-19 pandemic is associated with adverse mental health among healthcare workers. Nurses, younger staff, and staff with least working experience are more vulnerable.
Alcohol use disorder and its association with personal well-being and life satisfaction
- Chau Sian Lim, Zhen Wei Lew, Yoke Chiang Ng, Lai Huat Peh, Hatta Santoso Ong
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- Journal:
- BJPsych Open / Volume 7 / Issue S1 / June 2021
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 18 June 2021, p. S266
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Aims
This study aims to find out how alcohol use disorder (AUD) correlates to personal well-being and life satisfaction.
BackgroundAUD is prevalent and leads to significant physical, physiological, and social-occupational impairment. Mental well-being involves the overall positive psychological state of a person – being well adjusted, socially engaged, and emotionally healthy. Despite the paradigm shift from purely treating mental illness to promoting positive mental health, there is limited literature describing the relationship between alcohol use disorder and mental well-being.
MethodThis cross-sectional study was conducted in a general hospital in Singapore. Patients admitted across a span of two years were screened for possible alcohol use disorder. Patients were included if they were male, aged 21 years and above, and had the mental capacity to give consent. They were excluded if they had illicit drug use, acute mental illness, inability or refusal to give consent, or if they were already receiving intervention for addiction issues. Participants were administered the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). Those who scored 8 or above were classified as being at risk for AUD, while those who scored 7 or less were classified as at low risk. They were also administered the Personal Wellbeing Index (PWI) and the “Satisfaction with Life as a Whole” question. The PWI measures individuals’ subjective well-being across seven domains. The “Satisfaction with Life as a Whole” question measures, on an eleven-point Likert scale, how satisfied the respondent feels with life in general. Demographic data were also collected and STATA v. 12.1 was used for statistical analysis.
ResultAmong a total of 134 participants, 25 of them scored ≥8 on the AUDIT and 109 scored 7 or less. On the PWI, the group at risk scored significantly lower at 71.3 (95% CI: 66.0–76.7) compared to the group not at risk at 77.9 (95% CI: 75.8–79.9), p < 0.01. The results were similar on the “Satisfaction with Life as a Whole” item. The group at risk had a mean of 6.72 (95% CI: 6.03–7.41) while the group not at risk had a mean of 7.67 (95% CI: 7.41–7.93), both p < 0.01. The differences between the high risk and low risk groups remained statistically significant even after adjusting for differences in age, race, education level, and employment status.
ConclusionThis study demonstrated a statistically significant association between AUD and personal well-being as well as satisfaction with life among males.