Predictors of psychological distress and prevalence of self-reported mental disorders across healthcare professionals and the general population during the COVID-19 outbreak in Brazil

Resumen

Background: Knowing the rate of psychological distress and mental disorders, its severity, and factors associated with psychological distress is strategical during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: We analyzed online cross-sectional data from 164,881 health professionals and from 5,635 participants from the general population in Brazil. The Global Severity Index (GSI) from the Brief Symptom Inventory, self-reported diagnosis of mental disorders, sociodemographic characteristics, and factors related to COVID-19 (physical health status, diagnosis and contact history, perceptions and concerns, and precautionary measures) were compared between samples. Multiple regression analysis was used to investigate factors related to GSI scores. Results: Psychological distress was high or very high in 13.4% of health professionals and in 31.4% of the general population. Health professionals reported a lower rate of mental disorders (36%) compared with the general population (44.7%). Age (younger) and gender (female) predicted higher psychological distress for health professionals and economic class (lower) and household size (more members) for the general population. People with higher GSI scores reported to have experienced more physical symptoms associated with COVID-19, feeling less productive at work, being afraid of transmitting the coronavirus to the family, fear of financial difficulties, and feeling that home relations were worse during the pandemic outbreak. Limitations: Internet access in Brazil depends on sociodemographic factors, biasing the recruitment towards people with greater education level and income. The male vs. female unbalance (1:4) is a factor to account for when interpreting data. Prevalence of psychiatric disorders was self-declared. Conclusions: Psychological distress at the first wave of COVID-19 was associated with sociodemographic features and an anxious perception of experiences and thoughts associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Cómo citar (APA 7)

Costa, D. D. S., de Paula, J. J., Serpa, A. L. D. O., Diaz, A. P., da Rocha, M. C. M., Pinto, A. L. D. C. B., Joaquim, R. M., Loureiro, F. F., Junior, W. M., & Silva, A. G. (2021). Predictors of psychological distress and prevalence of self-reported mental disorders across healthcare professionals and the general population during the COVID-19 outbreak in Brazil. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/szhnx