The effect of the Educational Program Based on the Stages of Change on the Level of Anxiety Induced by COVID-19 in the Employees of General Health Service Centers of Gonabad City, Iran

Healthcare workers play a crucial role in combating the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, being at the forefront of the battle against this disease. Due to their direct exposure to the virus, they often experience heightened levels of anxiety. This study aimed to determine the anxiety levels caused by COVID-19 and assess the impact of an educational program, developed according to the stages of change model, on the anxiety levels of healthcare workers in the city of Gonabad, Iran, during the outbreak of COVID-19.

This study was conducted as a field trial. The population of this study consisted of the staff members working at the Gonabad Comprehensive Health Service Centers in 2021. In order to identify individuals with moderate to high levels of anxiety, the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS) was employed. Subsequently, participants were randomly assigned to the intervention or control group. A virtual training program was specifically designed for the intervention group and implemented over the course of one month, comprising six sessions conducted through the Skyroom application. Generalized estimating equations (GEE) were used for the test.

The results of the GEE model indicated that following the intervention, there was a significant increase in the average pre-thinking score (2.954 units), thinking score (3.091 units), preparation score (2.924 units), action score (4.454 units), and retention score (3.136 units) in the test group compared to the control group. Additionally, for each unit increase in time, the average total anxiety score in the test group was significantly lower (6.727 units), including mental anxiety (5.167 units) and physical anxiety (1.561 units), compared to the control group (P < 0.001).

The results of study showed that the educational program designed based on the stages of change was effective in reducing anxiety caused by COVID-19 disease. Therefore, it seems appropriate to design educational program interventions based on this theory to reduce anxiety levels during a similar epidemic to COVID-19.