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. 2022 Dec;12(4):516-523.
doi: 10.1007/s44197-022-00070-4. Epub 2022 Oct 15.

The Psychological Impact of Isolation on Hospitalised Patients with COVID-19 Infection in the UAE

Nahida Nayaz Ahmed  1 , Nirmin F Juber  2 , Reem AlKaabi  3 , Fatema AlShehhi  1 , Mohamed AlObeidli  1 , Ahlam Salem  1 , Alaa Galadari  1 , Shamil Wanigaratne  4 , Amar Ahmad  5
Affiliations

The Psychological Impact of Isolation on Hospitalised Patients with COVID-19 Infection in the UAE

Nahida Nayaz Ahmed et al. J Epidemiol Glob Health. 2022 Dec.

Abstract

Infection prevention and control measures for COVID-19 may include immediate admission to an isolation facility for the infected. However, the mental health impact of this isolation worldwide is not fully documented. This study aims to contribute to global data on the psychological impact of COVID-19 and to be the first study to assess psychological distress among hospitalised patients with COVID-19 in the UAE. Using a cross-sectional study design on 132 hospitalised patients, we found that 90% of participants scored within the normal levels for psychological distress. The length of stay was associated with higher levels of psychological distress and those aged 41-60 years had lower levels of psychological distress compared to the 31-40 years group. Our results contributed to global data on the psychological impact of COVID-19 and may help to identify those at risk for psychological distress due to COVID-19 hospitalisation for targeted prevention and future pandemic preparedness plans.

Keywords: Anxiety; COVID-19; Depression; Mental health; Psychological distress; UAE.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Distribution of the total IES-R score in the gender, age, nationality, and marital status groups. Wilcoxon p-value for gender and Kruskal–Wallis p-value for age, nationality, and marital status.*Other: Divorced/Widow
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Distribution of IES-R score, Anxiety, Depression, and Stress score, respectively. Spearman rank correlation with corresponding 95% confidence interval. All estimated Spearman correlations were statistically significant, p value < 0.001
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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