Department of Psychology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, I. Lučića 3, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia,
Psychiatr Danub. 2020 Autumn-Winter;32(3-4):536-548. doi: 10.24869/psyd.2020.536.
Many research has indicated that, during the COVID-19 pandemic, health care workers are under greatly increased pressure and at increased risk for the development of mental health problems. Furthermore, previous research has indicated that psychiatrists are exposed to a number of unique stressors that may increase their risk for poor mental health. The aims of the present study were to assess the level of COVID-19 related concerns, psychological distress and life satisfaction among psychiatrists and other physicians during the first period of the pandemic and to examine whether individual differences in COVID-19 concerns, psychological flexibility, psychological resilience and coping behaviors account for differences in mental health indicators.
The sample consisted of N=725 physicians, among whom 22.8% were psychiatrists. This study was conducted online during the first lockdown in Croatia and collected data regarding COVID-19 related concerns, coping behaviors and mental health indicators (Psychological Distress and Life Satisfaction).
Physicians of other specialties had higher scores on a measure of COVID-19 anxiety than psychiatrists (p=0.012). In addition, a number of differences in coping behaviors are evident. Specifically, psychiatrists were less likely than physicians of other specializations to believe that being informed about COVID-19 is an effective coping strategy (p=0.013), but more prone to using sedatives and drugs as a coping strategy (p=0.002; p=0.037).
Psychiatrists are at special risk for substance abuse. Younger age, psychological inflexibility, low resilience and greater COVID-19 concerns might act as specific risk factors for distress. Our findings highlight the need for promoting a healthy lifestyle and psychological flexibility as universal protective factors.
许多研究表明，在 COVID-19 大流行期间，医护人员承受着巨大的压力，心理健康问题的风险增加。此外，先前的研究表明，精神科医生面临着许多独特的压力源，这可能会增加他们心理健康状况不佳的风险。本研究的目的是评估大流行期间精神科医生和其他医生的 COVID-19 相关担忧、心理困扰和生活满意度水平，并探讨 COVID-19 相关担忧、心理灵活性、心理弹性和应对行为的个体差异是否可以解释心理健康指标的差异。
该样本由 N=725 名医生组成，其中 22.8%是精神科医生。本研究在克罗地亚第一次封锁期间在线进行，收集了与 COVID-19 相关的担忧、应对行为和心理健康指标（心理困扰和生活满意度）的数据。
与精神科医生相比，其他专业的医生在 COVID-19 焦虑量表上的得分更高（p=0.012）。此外，应对行为方面也存在一些差异。具体来说，与其他专业的医生相比，精神科医生不太可能认为了解 COVID-19 是一种有效的应对策略（p=0.013），但更倾向于使用镇静剂和药物作为应对策略（p=0.002；p=0.037）。
精神科医生特别容易滥用药物。年龄较小、心理灵活性较低、弹性较低和对 COVID-19 的担忧较大可能是困扰的特定风险因素。我们的研究结果强调了推广健康生活方式和心理灵活性作为普遍保护因素的必要性。
