Author/Authors :
Amerio, Andrea Department of Neuroscience Rehabilitation Ophthalmology Genetics - Maternal and Child Health (DINOGMI) - Section of Psychiatry - University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy , Bianchi, Davide Department of Neuroscience Rehabilitation Ophthalmology Genetics - Maternal and Child Health (DINOGMI) - Section of Psychiatry - University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy , Santi, Francesca Department of Neuroscience Rehabilitation Ophthalmology Genetics - Maternal and Child Health (DINOGMI) - Section of Psychiatry - University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy , Costantini, Luigi Department of Medicine and Surgery - University of Parma, Parma, Italy , Odone, Anna School of Medicine - Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy , Signorelli, Carlo School of Medicine - Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy , Costanza, Alessandra Department of Psychiatry - Faculty of Medicine - University of Geneva (UNIGE), Geneva, Switzerland , Serafini, Gianluca Department of Neuroscience Rehabilitation Ophthalmology Genetics - Maternal and Child Health (DINOGMI) - Section of Psychiatry - University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy , Amore, Mario Department of Neuroscience Rehabilitation Ophthalmology Genetics - Maternal and Child Health (DINOGMI) - Section of Psychiatry - University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy , Aguglia, Andrea Department of Neuroscience Rehabilitation Ophthalmology Genetics - Maternal and Child Health (DINOGMI) - Section of Psychiatry - University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
Abstract :
Background:Since the World Health Organization declared the new 2019 coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak first a Public Health Emergency of International Concern and then a pandemic, Italy held more than 195.350 cases and 26.380 deaths. Working in the frontline with suspected Covid-19 infection patients, general practitioners (GPs) are daily under both physical and psychological pressure. Methods: A web-based cross-sectional survey was carried out on italian GPs working in Genoa (Italy), to assess the im-pact of Covid-19 pandemic on mental health. The survey was anonymous and a free Google Forms® software was used. Results: One hundred thirty-one GPs completed the survey. Compared to GPs with absent or mild depressive symptoms (PHQ-9 < 10), GPsreporting moderate to severe depressive symptoms (N=30, 22.9%; PHQ-9 ≥ 10) reported more helplessness (96.7% vs. 79.2%, p=.025), spent more than three hours searching for COVID-19 information (43.3% vs. 19.8%, p=.024), perceived less adequate personal protective equip-ment (PPE) (6.7% vs. 23.8%, p=.049) and visited more COVID-19 infected patients (16.63 ± 27.30 vs. 9.52 ± 11.75, p=.041). Moreover, PHQ-9 ≥ 10 GPs reported a significant higher severity for both anxiety and insomnia (13.43 ± 4.96 vs. 4.88 ± 3.53 and 11.60 ± 5.53 vs. 4.84 ± 3.81, respectively; p<.001), and a worse quality of life in both mental (34.60 ± 7.45 vs. 46.01 ± 7.83, p<.001) and physical (43.50 ± 9.37 vs. 52.94 ± 4.78, p<.001) component summary.Conclusions: Our results give early insight into the urgent need to provide continuity of care for patients at the community-level, adequate PPE to GPs and a clear guidance from public health institutions. A precarious healthcare system both at a national and regional level might have triggered negative mental health outcomes in Italian GPs. (www.actabiomedica.it)
Keywords :
Covid-19 , general practitioners , mental health , Italy
