Psychological Symptoms Among Iranian Healthcare Workers During COVID-19 Pandemic

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic affected working conditions in healthcare systems and caused occupational stress and challenges for the majority of healthcare workers (HCWs).

This study aimed to examine the prevalence of anxiety, depression, burnout, and career resilience and assess the personal and occupational risk factors contributing to psychological symptoms in Iranian HCWs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Through a cross-sectional study, HCWs were surveyed within January to February 2022 to evaluate the prevalence of anxiety and depression (using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale [HADS]), burnout (using the Maslach burnout inventory health services survey for medical personnel [MBI-HSS-MP]), and career resilience (using the Career Resilience Questionnaire [CRQ]). The correlation between demographic-occupational factors and psychological symptoms was analyzed. A total of 610 complete responses were received from Iranian HCWs.

Approximately 87.9% of HCWs had symptoms of both anxiety and depression (HADS score  11). The results indicated that most HCWs experienced various signs of burnout (i.e., emotional exhaustion, decreased sense of personal accomplishment, and depersonalization, respectively). The mean score for career resilience reported by the participants was appropriate; however, a fifth of the HCWs had poor career resilience. The highest scores of burnout, anxiety, and depression, in addition to the lowest scores of career resilience, were reported by intensive care unit (ICU) professionals.

Marital status, long daily working hours, night shift work, access to personal protective equipment (PPE), and direct exposure to patients with COVID-19 had a significant impact on the anxiety, depression, burnout, and resilience of the HCWs.