Mental health outcomes among health-care workers during the COVID-19 outbreak in Iran

Abstract

Purpose The increasing prevalence of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a global crisis that leads to physical and psychological outcomes for health-care workers, so this study aims to investigate the mental health outcomes (including general health, generalized anxiety disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder) in health-care workers in Rafsanjan, Iran. Design/methodology/approach By using convenience sampling, this cross-sectional study was conducted on 332 health-care workers working in public hospitals in southern Iran. Data collection lasted from March to April 2020. General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28), Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) and Impact of Event Scale were used to collect data. The data were then analyzed by using SPSS 25 and descriptive and inferential statistics (chi-square and multivariate logistic regression). Findings In total 45.5 of the participants had psychological disorder according to GHQ. In addition, 25.3 of the participants had GAD and 31.6 had posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The results using multivariate logistic regression showed that only income was significantly associated with psychological disorders (95 confidence interval for odds ratio: 1.32-6.45, P = 0.008). Practical implications According to the results, the incidence of GAD and PTSD was high among health-care workers. Therefore, it is recommended that the psychological skills of health-care workers be strengthened through counseling and training programs. Originality/value This paper provides a novel analysis of mental health in health-care workers in Iran.