Posttraumatic stress disorder and major depression among frontline healthcare staff working during the COVID-19 Pandemic
<p><strong>Objectives:</strong> High rates of probable post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive disorder (MDD) have been reported for frontline healthcare staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, rates determined by diagnostic assessment are unknown, as are th...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Journal article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
2021
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| Summary: | <p><strong>Objectives:</strong> High rates of probable post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive disorder (MDD) have been reported for frontline healthcare staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, rates determined by diagnostic assessment are unknown, as are the onset of symptoms and associated index events.</p>
<p><strong>Methods:</strong> We assessed frontline healthcare staff with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5.</p>
<p><strong>Results:</strong> Forty-four percent met criteria for PTSD and 39% met criteria for MDD. Twenty-four percent reported COVID-19 trauma as their index event, with the majority of staff reporting trauma that pre-dated the pandemic. While PTSD was likely to be pre-existing, MDD was more likely to develop during pandemic working.</p>
<p><strong>Conclusion:</strong> These findings indicate the propensity of healthcare staff to experience a range of occupational and personal trauma associated with PTSD and the need to assess index trauma when diagnosing psychopathology in order to best understand the needs of this workforce.</p> |
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