Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Apr 10:11:e15053.
doi: 10.7717/peerj.15053. eCollection 2023.

Change in depression during the COVID-19 pandemic among healthcare providers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Firehiwot Workneh  1 , Alemayehu Worku  1   2 , Nega Assefa  3 , Yemane Berhane  1
Affiliations

Change in depression during the COVID-19 pandemic among healthcare providers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Firehiwot Workneh et al. PeerJ. .

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has increased mental health problems among healthcare workers globally. However, studies from low- and middle-income countries on this matter were minimal. This study assessed the change in depression prevalence during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated factors among healthcare providers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Methods: We conducted surveys among healthcare workers in Addis Ababa at two-time points, September 2020 and October 2021. A total of 577 study participants were randomly selected based on registers obtained from professional associations. Computer-assisted telephone interviewing technique was used for data collection. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) was used to screen for depression. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to identify potential factors associated with depression.

Result: The prevalence of depression among healthcare workers was 2.3% (95% CI [1.1-4.8]) in Time 1 and 6.5% (95% CI [4.1-10.1]) in Time 2; nearly a three-fold increase in Time 2 compared to Time 1. The most frequently reported symptoms at both times based on the PHQ-9 item were having poor energy, sleep problem, and anhedonia, while reported suicidal ideation was less than 5%. Depression showed a positive and significant association with a positive COVID-19 test result (AOR 7.25 95% CI [1.32-39.4]) in Time 1, and with being a female healthcare provider (AOR 3.96 95% CI [1.08-14.51]) and lack of COVID-19 related policy or guidelines at the workplace (AOR 3.22 95% CI [1.11-9.35]) in Time 2.

Conclusion: The prevalence of depression among healthcare workers tripled during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Panic reaction to positive COVID-19 test result seems to have a negative effect at the beginning while lack of disease-specific prevention guidelines and comprehensive psychological interventions for healthcare providers had an adverse effect on the mental health of health workers.

Keywords: Addis Ababa; COVID-19; Depression; Ethiopia; Healthcare providers; Mental health.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare there are no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Distributional patterns of PHQ-9 item responses among healthcare professionals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Each data point indicates the percentage (frequency) of reported PHQ9 symptoms in both Time 1 and Time 2.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Abdella S, Riou S, Tessema M, Assefa A, Seifu A, Blachman A, Abera A, Moreno N, Irarrazaval F, Tollera G, Browning D, Tasew G. Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in urban and rural ethiopia: randomized household serosurveys reveal level of spread during the first wave of the pandemic. EClinicalMedicine. 2021;35:100880. doi: 10.1016/j.eclinm.2021.100880. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Abhery D, Tim B, Shekhar S, Ada A, Sami A, Christopher HH, Reem A, Sameh E-S, Abdullah A. COVID-19 and mental health in vulnerable populations: a narrative review. Narrative review. World Bank Group 2021
    1. Al-Obaidy LM, Attash HM, Al-Qazaz HK. Depression, anxiety and stress after COVID-19 vaccination: a retrospective cross-sectional study among health care providers. Pharmacy Practice. 2022;20(3):01–08. doi: 10.18549/PharmPract.2022.3.2689. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Almalki AH, Alzahrani MS, Alshehri FS, Alharbi A, Alkhudaydi SF, Alshahrani RS, Alzaidi AH, Algarni MA, Alsaab HO, Alatawi Y, Althobaiti YS, Bamaga AK, Alhifany AA. The psychological impact of COVID-19 on healthcare workers in Saudi Arabia: a year later into the pandemic. Frontiers in Psychiatry. 2021;12:797545. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.797545. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Almeida T, Heitor MJ, Santos O, Costa A, Rasga C, Martiniano H, Virgolino A, Fialho M, Vicente AM. Mental health in times of COVID-19: policy brief. European Journal of Public Health. 2021;31(3):ckab165.598. doi: 10.1093/eurpub/ckab165.598. - DOI

Publication types