Mental health outcomes among health-care workers during the COVID-19 outbreak in Iran

Purpose The increasing prevalence of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a global crisis that leads to physical and psychological outcomes for health-care workers, so this study aims to investigate the mental health outcomes (including general health, generalized anxiety disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder) in health-care workers in Rafsanjan, Iran. Design/methodology/approach By using convenience sampling, this cross-sectional study was conducted on 332 health-care workers working in public hospitals in southern Iran. Data collection lasted from March to April 2020. General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28), Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) and Impact of Event Scale were used to collect data. The data were then analyzed by using SPSS 25 and descriptive and inferential statistics (chi-square and multivariate logistic regression). Findings In total 45.5% of the participants had psychological disorder according to GHQ. In addition, 25.3% of the participants had GAD and 31.6% had posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The results using multivariate logistic regression showed that only income was significantly associated with psychological disorders (95% confidence interval for odds ratio: 1.32-6.45, P = 0.008). Practical implications According to the results, the incidence of GAD and PTSD was high among health-care workers. Therefore, it is recommended that the psychological skills of health-care workers be strengthened through counseling and training programs. Originality/value This paper provides a novel analysis of mental health in health-care workers in Iran.