Publication: Stress among Resident Doctors Working in Different Hospitals of Nepal in the Face of COVID-19 Pandemic: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study Authors
Date
2021
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Nepal Medical Association
Abstract
Abstract:
Introduction: The emergence and propagation of COVID-19 pandemic has subjected resident doctors to greater workload and consequent psychological implications. Many studies have illustrated various degrees of mental health issues among health care workers in general; however very limited ones have focused primarily on the resident doctors. Therefore, this study aimed to find out the prevalence of stress among the resident doctors of Nepal.
Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out in all the teaching hospitals of Nepal with ethical clearance from the Institutional Review Committee (Reference number-245). An online self-designed structured questionnaire developed using Google forms along with questions from stress subscale of Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21 was disseminated to the residents via social media platforms using Convenience sampling technique. Responses generated were analyzed with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences.Point estimate at 95% Confidence Interval was calculated along with frequency and proportion for binary data.
Results: The prevalence of stress among resident doctors was found to be 16 (8.2%) (4.3-12.1 at 95% Confidence Interval). Greater prevalence of stress was seen among residents working outside Kathmandu valley, those in the frontline and those who were unmarried. Loss of collaborative study/ professional and academic growth experiences was responsible for causing extremely severe stress among 60 (30.9%) residents, followed by stress due to uncertainty regarding COVID-19 58 (29.9%) and unavailability/lack of quality control of personal protective equipment 58 (29.9%).
Conclusions: This study has shed light upon the prevalence of stress and its precipitating factors in Nepalese resident doctors due to COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings could help address these issues for their mitigation promptly.
Description
Gauri Adhikari
Hospital for Advanced Medicine and Surgery, Dhumbarahi, Kathmandu, Nepal.
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4250-9839
Leela Poudel
Department of Community Medicine, Nepalese Army Institute of Health Sciences, Sanobharyang, Kathmandu, Nepal.
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0366-653X
Bidushi Pokhrel
Hospital for Advanced Medicine and Surgery, Dhumbarahi, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Ganesh Bhandari
Department of Community Medicine, Nepalese Army Institute of Health Sciences, Sanobharyang, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Kshitij Kumar Shrestha
Department of Community Medicine , Nepalese Army Institute of Health Sciences, Sanobharyang, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Keywords
COVID-19, Nepal, resident, stress, stressor