MENTAL HEALTH OF MEDICAL STAFF IN COVID UNITS

Uvod: Koronovirusna bolest utjecala je na ekonomske, društvene, bihevioralne i medicinske aspekte naših života. Svjetska zdravstvena organizacija (SZO) je Covid – 19 pandemiju 30. siječnja 2020. godine proglasila javnozdravstvenim hitnim stanjem od međunarodnog značaja. Bolest je službeno nazvana koronovirusna bolest (Covid – 19) 11. veljače 2020. godine (1). Prvi poznati slučaj je identificiran u Republici Kini, u Wuhanu, u prosincu 2019. godine. Cilj: U ovom radu prikazati će se utjecaj Covid – 19 pandemije na mentalno zdravlje zdravstvenih djelatnika koji su radili u Covid jedinicama u odnosu na zdravstvene djelatnike koji nisu radili u Covid jedinicama Materijali i metode: U istraživanje je uključeno ukupno 64 ispitanika. Ispitanici su podijeljeni u 2 skupine: zdravstveni djelatnici koji su radili u Covid jedinicama (N=32) i zdravstveni djelatnici koji nisu radili u Covid jedinicama (N=32). Procjenjivala se razina depresije, anksioznosti i stresa. Za procjenu se koristio upitnik Depression Anxiety Stress Test (DASS 21). Prikupljali su se i sociodemografski podaci: dob, spol, godine života, stupanj obrazovanja. Rezultati: Prosječna dob ispitanika je 41.25 godina. U istraživanju je sudjelovalo 18,75% zdravstvenih djelatnika muškog spola i 81,25% ženskog spola. S obzirom na stupanj obrazovanja većina ispitanika ima visoku stručnu spremu i više (89,06%). 32 zdravstvena djelatnika radila su prosječno 3,5 mjeseci u Covid jedinici i to od jedan do šest mjeseci. Ispitanici se statistički značajno ne razlikuju po razini stresa (U = 489; P=0,756), anksioznosti (U= 424; P00,227) i depresije (U = 494; P=0,804). Duljina vremena zaposlenika provedenih s bolesnicima oboljelima od Covid – a ne korelira statistički značajno sa stresom (σ=0,06; P=0,701), anksioznošću (σ = 0,16; P=0,374) i s depresijom (σ = 0,06; P=0,757). Zaključak: Prema sveukupnom rezultatu hipoteze se nisu potvrdile što bi se prepisalo tome da je istraživanje provedeno u vremenu kad Covid – pandemija nije bila toliko aktivna te je vjerojatno da su zdravstveni djelatnici kroz vrijeme pandemije razvili psihološku otpornost i snagu koja im je omogućila smanjivanje simptoma povezanih s depresijom, anksioznošću i stresomIntroduction: The coronavirus disease has affected the economic, social, behavioral and medical aspects of our lives. On January 30, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the Covid – 19 pandemic a public health emergency of international importance. The disease was officially named coronovirus disease (Covid-19) on February 11, 2020 (1). The first known case was identified in the Republic of China, in Wuhan, in December 2019. Objective: This paper will show the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the mental health of health workers who worked in Covid units compared to health workers who did not work in Covid units. Materials and methods: A total of 64 subjects were included in the research. The respondents were divided into 2 groups: health workers who worked in Covid units (N=32) and health workers who did not work in Covid units (N=32). The level of depression, anxiety and stress was assessed. The Depression Anxiety Stress Test (DASS 21) questionnaire was used for assessment. Sociodemographic data were also collected: age, sex, years of life, level of education. Results: The average age of the respondents is 41.25 years. 18.75% of male health workers and 81.25% of female health workers participated in the research. Regarding the level of education, the majority of respondents have a university degree or higher (89.06%). 32 healthcare workers worked an average of 3.5 months in the Covid unit, from one to six months. The respondents do not differ statistically significantly in terms of the level of stress (U = 489; P=0.756), anxiety (U= 424; P00.227) and depression (U = 494; P=0.804). The length of time employees spent with patients suffering from Covid does not correlate statistically significantly with stress (σ=0.06; P=0.701), anxiety (σ = 0.16; P=0.374) and depression (σ = 0.06; P=0.757). Conclusion: According to the overall results, the hypotheses were not confirmed, which could be attributed to the fact that the research was conducted at a time when the Covid pandemic was not so active, and it is likely that during the pandemic, health workers developed psychological resistance and strength that enabled them to reduce the symptoms associated with depression, anxiety and stres