Assessment of the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health and wellbeing of pharmacists: A nationwide survey.

OBJECTIVES

To explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and work on the mental health and wellbeing of pharmacists in Nigeria and investigate the risk of exhaustion, disengagement, burnout, and their associated factors.

METHODS

This was an online cross-sectional study among pharmacists that involved the use of mental health and wellbeing questionnaire including a 16-item OLBI questionnaire. Descriptive statistical analyses were performed to determine the study distribution. Chi-square test was used to compare categorical variables, while independent sample -test and one-way ANOVA were used to compare the mean values of two and three groups, respectively. Tukey posthoc test was used to compare various practice settings based on significant factors, while a two-sided Dunnett -test was used to compare between groups for other significant factors. A -value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS

Of the 612 pharmacists invited to participate in the survey, 426 completed and submitted the questionnaire giving a response rate of 69.6%. The Cronbach's alpha for wellness and mental health survey instrument in our study population is 0.74, while the average Cronbach's alpha for a 16-item OLBI questionnaire is 0.62 in our study population. The high risk of exhaustion and disengagement were met by 75.6% and 77.2% of the respondents, respectively. Eighty-three respondents (19.5%) met thresholds for either high risk of exhaustion or disengagement, while 66.2% had both a high risk of exhaustion and disengagement (burnout). Significant proportions of respondents with undergraduate pharmacy degree as the highest qualification obtained (70.6%, < 0.001), in the hospital practice setting (62.8%, p < 0.001), and in full-time employment type (68.1%, = 0.004) had the higher risk of burnout compared to their counterparts.

CONCLUSION

The COVID-19 pandemic and work significantly impacted the mental health and wellbeing of a considerable proportion of the respondents. Burnout affects the majority of pharmacists in Nigeria and is linked to undergraduate pharmacy degrees as the highest qualification obtained, hospital practice settings, and full-time employment. Thus, mitigating strategies from employees, government, and organizations are recommended to help improve working conditions and promote the well-being of pharmacists in Nigeria.