Open J Psychiatry Allied Sci. 2021;12:109-14. doi: 10.5958/2394-2061.2021.00024.0. Epub 2021 Feb 13.

Screening of depression and anxiety amongst resident doctors at a tertiary care hospital in Gujarat during the COVID-19 pandemic: an online survey.

Savani C, Barot CK.

Abstract

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has emerged as a public health emergency and has affected people in several domains including physical, financial, and psychological. Resident doctors have also suffered from psychological issues while working at the frontline to help the community. Aim: To screen for anxiety and depression among resident doctors of various departments involved/not involved in COVID-19 duty. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted on 175 resident doctors of various departments at a tertiary care hospital. They were screened for depression using the Public Health Questionnaire (PHQ)-9 and for anxiety using a seven-item generalized anxiety disorder scale (GAD-7). The study was conducted through an online survey using Google forms. Results: Out of 175 resident doctors, 15.42% were screened positive for depression requiring treatment and 15.42% for anxiety requiring further evaluation. Significant association was found between depression and presence of any kind of symptoms and psychiatric comorbidity, between anxiety and gender, presence of psychiatric comorbidity, and any kind of symptoms. Conclusion: Our study suggested elevated levels of anxiety and depression due to COVID-19 pandemic. This alarmed the need of early psychiatric intervention to help them cope with the issue.

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