Title
Psychological and physical impact of wearing personal protective equipment among health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic
Authors
Madhavrao Chavan, Sushil Sharma, Santenna Chenchula*, Gaurav Rangari, Arup Kumar Misra & Pavani Saggurthi
Affiliation
Department of Pharmacology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Mangalagiri, Andhra Pradesh, India; *Corresponding author
Madhavrao Chavan - E-mail: madhavrao.pharm@aiimsmangalagiri.edu.in
Sushil Sharma - E-mail: drsushil.pharma@aiimsmangalagiri.edu.in
Santenna Chenchula - E-mail: csanten7@gmail.com; Phone +91 7987220348
Gaurav Rangari - E-mail:gaurav83@aiimsmangalagiri.edu.in
Arup Kumar Misra - E-mail: arup.pharma@aiimsmangalagiri.edu.in
Pavani Saggurthi - E-mail:pavani.saggurthi94@gmail.com
Article Type
Research Article
Date
Received August 1, 2024; Revised August 31, 2024; Accepted August 31, 2024, Published August 31, 2024
Abstract
Healthcare workers (HCWs) are front-line warriors in the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, it is of interest to assess the psychological and physical effects of personal protective equipment (PPE) among HCWs caring for COVID-19 patients. This cross-sectional study utilized a validated, well-structured questionnaire consisting of 24 questions to collect information on the psychological and physical effects experienced by HCWs. The study adhered to relevant EQUATOR guidelines for reporting. The study collected online data from 114 HCWs working in COVID-19 settings while using PPE. Among the respondents, 33% reported anxiety, 23.1% experienced apprehension after donning PPE, and 68.1% felt discomfort. Additionally, 46.2% required up to 12 hours for psychological restoration after a COVID-19 duty shift, 17.6% were worried about the risk of infection, and 28.6% were extremely worried about infecting family members while on duty. The findings highlight significant discomfort, anxiety, and apprehension among HCWs due to prolonged PPE use, reflecting the immense psychological burden of working in high-risk environments during the pandemic. These results emphasize the need for comprehensive support systems and interventions to address the multifaceted needs of HCWs, including psychological support, adequate breaks, and measures to mitigate physical discomfort.
Keywords
COVID-19, PPE, health care workers, psychological effects, physical effects.
Citation
Chavan et al. Bioinformation 20(8): 822-829 (2024)
Edited by
P Kangueane
ISSN
0973-2063
Publisher
License
This is an Open Access article which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. This is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.
