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. 2023 Aug 7;15(8):e43081.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.43081. eCollection 2023 Aug.

Effect of Structured Yoga Program on Stress and Well-being Among Frontline Healthcare Workers During COVID-19 Pandemic

Puneet Misra  1 , Suprakash Mandal  1 , Gautam Sharma  2 , Shashi Kant  3 , Sanjay Rai  1 , Kapil Yadav  1 , Meenu Sangral  1 , Priyanka Kardam  1
Affiliations

Effect of Structured Yoga Program on Stress and Well-being Among Frontline Healthcare Workers During COVID-19 Pandemic

Puneet Misra et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Context: Frontline healthcare workers are at risk of developing psychological distress during a pandemic. Yoga, a form of mind-body medicine can reduce body stress and increases well-being.

Aims: To assess the effect of yoga on the stress and well-being of healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Settings and design: This single-arm pre-post study was conducted among frontline health workers (support staff, paramedics, and medics) posted at a secondary care hospital in a North Indian district.

Methods and materials: Basic demographic details, blood pressure, anthropometric variables like height, weight, and biochemical variables like glycosylated hemoglobin (Hb1Ac), fasting and post-prandial blood sugar, lipid profile, serum cortisol, and C-reactive protein were measured. Stress levels were assessed using the depression anxiety and stress scale (DASS)-21 while well-being was assessed using the World Health Organization (WHO)-5 well-being scale. Twelve weeks of supervised yoga session was provided for 1 hour per session, 3 times per week.

Statistical analysis: The mean value was compared from baseline to post-intervention with paired t-test/Wilcoxon signed rank test.

Result: A total of 89 participants were enrolled, 53 (59.5%) being male. Two-thirds of the participants were aged 20-39 years. During follow-up, 80 participants completed 12 weeks of yoga sessions. Post-intervention DASS-21 score decreased and WHO-5 increased significantly. The glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) level and cholesterol-HDL ratio decreased significantly. Other variables didn't change significantly. No adverse effects were reported by the participants.

Conclusion: Supervised structured yoga sessions helped decrease stress, depression, and anxiety and improved well-being. Therefore, it can be a feasible strategy to manage workplace-related stress and phycological morbidities.

Keywords: covid-19; frontline; health-worker; stress; yoga.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

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