Psychological impact of COVID 19 on Healthcare Workers of Lautoka Hospital, Fiji - a descriptive cross-sectional study from March 2020 - October 2021

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant effect on the psychological well-being of healthcare workers globally. Life began to return to the new normal, national and international travel restrictions were lifted and there seemed to be more awareness and conversations of and about mental health.

Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the health workers at the Lautoka Hospital in Fiji when life returned to “normal” following easing of COVID-19 restrictions by the Ministry of Health and Medical Services.

Methodology: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from April to September 2022, 6 months after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted by the Fiji Ministry of Health and Medical Services. Validated questionnaires were utilised to assess for psychological well-being of doctors, nurses and midwives of varying professional seniority. Those who worked as front-line staff during Fiji’s COVID-19 outbreak from March 2020 to October 2021 were invited to participate. The Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and The Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) were distributed electronically to participants and completed anonymously in context of COVID-19.

Results: In all, 127 people responded to the survey (57 nurses/midwives, 70 doctors). Doctors were further classified into junior doctors (42), registrars (20) and consultants/specialists (8). Almost 82% reported some form of insomnia on the ISI (36.2% moderate insomnia; 3.9% severe insomnia). The PHQ-9 revealed that 81% of respondents had some form of depression (41% moderate to severe depression; 40.2% mild depression). With regards to self-harm, 25.2% reported having thoughts of hurting themselves or feeling that they were better off dead, whilst 11.8% had these thoughts on several days. The GAD scale revealed that 77% of respondents had some form of anxiety (19.7% moderate anxiety; 19.7% severe anxiety).

Conclusion: Approximately 40% of the health professionals surveyed had some episodes of depression, anxiety or insomnia and 25% had thoughts of self-harm or being better off dead. Whether the past experience of working with COVID-19 contributed to these significant mental health findings cannot be established. This was the initial intention of the project. Regardless, it is critical that workplace mental health support systems including practical and appropriate resources and interventions are made available and accessible without risk for discrimination during times of global crisis like pandemics and regional environmental events like floods and cyclones. Further validation through real-time studies conducted during a pandemic, rather than post-event, would strengthen the findings and provide more reliable data.