The impact of COVID-19 on mental health outcomes among hospital fever clinic attendants across Nepal: A cross-sectional study.
<h4>Background</h4>The COVID-19 pandemic has been creating a panic and distressing situations among the entire population globally including Nepal. No study has been conducted assessing the psychological impact of this pandemic on the general public in Nepal. The objective of this study...
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2021-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0248684&type=printable |
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| author | Hridaya Raj Devkota Tula Ram Sijali Ramji Bogati Meraj Ahmad Karuna Laxmi Shakya Pratik Adhikary |
| author_facet | Hridaya Raj Devkota Tula Ram Sijali Ramji Bogati Meraj Ahmad Karuna Laxmi Shakya Pratik Adhikary |
| author_sort | Hridaya Raj Devkota |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <h4>Background</h4>The COVID-19 pandemic has been creating a panic and distressing situations among the entire population globally including Nepal. No study has been conducted assessing the psychological impact of this pandemic on the general public in Nepal. The objective of this study is to assess the mental health status during COVID-19 outbreak and explore the potential influencing factors among the population attending the hospital fever clinics with COVID-19 symptoms.<h4>Methods</h4>A cross-sectional survey was conducted between May-June, 2020 with a sample of 645 participants aged 18 and above in 26 hospitals across Nepal. Telephone interviews were conducted using a semi-structured questionnaire along with a validated psychometric tool, the Depression, Anxiety and Stress (DASS-21) scale. The metrics and scores of symptoms and their severity were created and analyzed. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine the association of potential covariates with outcome variables.<h4>Results</h4>The prevalence of anxiety, depression and stress were 14%, 7% and 5% respectively. In reference to Karnali, participants from Bagmati province reported higher level of anxiety (OR 3.44, 95% CI 1.31-9.06), while stress (OR 4.27, 95% CI 1.09-18.32) and depressive symptoms (OR 3.11, 95% CI 1.05-9.23) observed higher among the participants in Province 1. Women were more at risk of anxiety (OR 3.41, 95% CI 1.83-6.36) than men. Similarly, people currently living in rented houses reported more stress (OR 2.97, 95% CI 1.05-8.43) and those living far from family reported higher rates of depressive symptoms (OR 3.44, 95% CI 1.03-11.46).<h4>Conclusion</h4>The study identified increased prevalence of stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms during the initial stage of COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal. Considering the findings, there is urgent need to develop and implement appropriate community-based mental health programs targeting individuals who have had COVID-19 symptoms and who are prone to develop adverse mental health outcomes. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b07844b807fd4e7e8491abd5990748c0 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
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| spelling | doaj-art-b07844b807fd4e7e8491abd5990748c02025-08-20T02:17:56ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032021-01-01163e024868410.1371/journal.pone.0248684The impact of COVID-19 on mental health outcomes among hospital fever clinic attendants across Nepal: A cross-sectional study.Hridaya Raj DevkotaTula Ram SijaliRamji BogatiMeraj AhmadKaruna Laxmi ShakyaPratik Adhikary<h4>Background</h4>The COVID-19 pandemic has been creating a panic and distressing situations among the entire population globally including Nepal. No study has been conducted assessing the psychological impact of this pandemic on the general public in Nepal. The objective of this study is to assess the mental health status during COVID-19 outbreak and explore the potential influencing factors among the population attending the hospital fever clinics with COVID-19 symptoms.<h4>Methods</h4>A cross-sectional survey was conducted between May-June, 2020 with a sample of 645 participants aged 18 and above in 26 hospitals across Nepal. Telephone interviews were conducted using a semi-structured questionnaire along with a validated psychometric tool, the Depression, Anxiety and Stress (DASS-21) scale. The metrics and scores of symptoms and their severity were created and analyzed. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine the association of potential covariates with outcome variables.<h4>Results</h4>The prevalence of anxiety, depression and stress were 14%, 7% and 5% respectively. In reference to Karnali, participants from Bagmati province reported higher level of anxiety (OR 3.44, 95% CI 1.31-9.06), while stress (OR 4.27, 95% CI 1.09-18.32) and depressive symptoms (OR 3.11, 95% CI 1.05-9.23) observed higher among the participants in Province 1. Women were more at risk of anxiety (OR 3.41, 95% CI 1.83-6.36) than men. Similarly, people currently living in rented houses reported more stress (OR 2.97, 95% CI 1.05-8.43) and those living far from family reported higher rates of depressive symptoms (OR 3.44, 95% CI 1.03-11.46).<h4>Conclusion</h4>The study identified increased prevalence of stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms during the initial stage of COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal. Considering the findings, there is urgent need to develop and implement appropriate community-based mental health programs targeting individuals who have had COVID-19 symptoms and who are prone to develop adverse mental health outcomes.https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0248684&type=printable |
| spellingShingle | Hridaya Raj Devkota Tula Ram Sijali Ramji Bogati Meraj Ahmad Karuna Laxmi Shakya Pratik Adhikary The impact of COVID-19 on mental health outcomes among hospital fever clinic attendants across Nepal: A cross-sectional study. PLoS ONE |
| title | The impact of COVID-19 on mental health outcomes among hospital fever clinic attendants across Nepal: A cross-sectional study. |
| title_full | The impact of COVID-19 on mental health outcomes among hospital fever clinic attendants across Nepal: A cross-sectional study. |
| title_fullStr | The impact of COVID-19 on mental health outcomes among hospital fever clinic attendants across Nepal: A cross-sectional study. |
| title_full_unstemmed | The impact of COVID-19 on mental health outcomes among hospital fever clinic attendants across Nepal: A cross-sectional study. |
| title_short | The impact of COVID-19 on mental health outcomes among hospital fever clinic attendants across Nepal: A cross-sectional study. |
| title_sort | impact of covid 19 on mental health outcomes among hospital fever clinic attendants across nepal a cross sectional study |
| url | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0248684&type=printable |
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