Open AccessSymptoms of Anxiety, Depression, and Peritraumatic Dissociation in Critical Care Clinicians Managing Patients with COVID-19. A Cross-Sectional Study
Author(s) -
Élie Azoulay,
Alain Cariou,
Fabrice Bruneel,
Alexandre Demoule,
Achille Kouatchet,
Danielle Reuter,
Virginie Souppart,
Alain Combes,
Kada Klouche,
Laurent Argaud,
François Barbier,
Mercé Jourdain,
Jean Reignier,
Laurent Papazian,
Bertrand Guidet,
Guillaume Géri,
Matthieu RescheRigon,
Olivier Guisset,
Julien Labreuche,
Bruno Mégarbane,
Guillaume Van Der Meersch,
Christophe Guitton,
Diane Friedman,
Frédéric Pochard,
Michaël Darmon,
Nancy KentishBarnes
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
american journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.272
H-Index - 374
eISSN - 1535-4970
pISSN - 1073-449X
DOI - 10.1164/rccm.202006-2568oc
Subject(s) - medicine , anxiety , cross sectional study , odds ratio , confidence interval , depression (economics) , psychiatry , mental health , hospital anxiety and depression scale , clinical psychology , pathology , economics , macroeconomics
Rationale: Frontline healthcare providers (HCPs) during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic are at high risk of mental morbidity. Objectives: To assess the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety, depression, and peritraumatic dissociation in HCPs. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study in 21 ICUs in France between April 20, 2020, and May 21, 2020. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and the Peritraumatic Dissociative Experience Questionnaire were used. Factors independently associated with reported symptoms of mental health disorders were identified. Measurements and Main Results: The response rate was 67%, with 1,058 respondents (median age 33 yr; 71% women; 68% nursing staff). The prevalence of symptoms of anxiety, depression, and peritraumatic dissociation was 50.4%, 30.4%, and 32%, respectively, with the highest rates in nurses. By multivariable analysis, male sex was independently associated with lower prevalence of symptoms of anxiety, depression, and peritraumatic dissociation (odds ratio of 0.58 [95% confidence interval, 0.42-0.79], 0.57 [95% confidence interval, 0.39-0.82], and 0.49 [95% confidence interval, 0.34-0.72], respectively). HCPs working in non-university-affiliated hospitals and nursing assistants were at high risk of symptoms of anxiety and peritraumatic dissociation. Importantly, we identified the following six modifiable determinants of symptoms of mental health disorders: fear of being infected, inability to rest, inability to care for family, struggling with difficult emotions, regret about the restrictions in visitation policies, and witnessing hasty end-of-life decisions. Conclusions: HCPs experience high levels of psychological burden during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hospitals, ICU directors, and ICU staff must devise strategies to overcome the modifiable determinants of adverse mental illness symptoms.