Addressing the Ffactors affecting the Aanxiety of Turkish Mmidwives during the the COVID-19 Ppandemic: A Ccross-sectional Sstudy

During the COVID-19 pandemic, health professionals have experienced a variety of mental health challenges. Studies on the anxiety levels of Turkish midwives during the pandemic are limited. The present research aimed to describe the anxiety levels of midwives during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This cross-sectional study was conducted using a web-based basis between 08-29 June 2020. The sample of the study consisted of 606 midwives. The Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) scale was used to measure the midwives' anxiety.

The mean general anxiety disorder score of the participants in the study was found to be 7.88 ± 5.36. It was observed that 259 (42.7%) showed symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder. Key risk factors; the state of midwives experiencing anxiety disorder symptoms increases 12.182 times in individuals with a family at risk of COVID-19, and 5.458 times in cases where working hours are 45 hours or more per week (P<0.05).

Coclusion: 

Based on the findings of the present research, symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder were observed in nearly half of the midwives. Major reasons for anxiety among midwives included having family members in the COVID-19 risk group that they were responsible for and working over standard working hours. Midwives should be protected from the risk of contamination and provided with adequate personal protective equipment, working hours should be improved, and personal empowerment programs should be offered to support them in coping with anxiety.