Coronaphobia among healthcare professionals and its associations with sleep quality, physical activity, and fatigue in Turkey

Abstract

BackgroundHealthcare professionals are at high risk of developing physical and mental health outcomes due to the coronavirus.PurposeThe study aimed to investigate coronaphobia levels in healthcare professionals and explore the relationship between other related factors in Turkey.MethodsThis cross-sectional descriptive study included 422 participants. Sociodemographic characteristics such as age and gender; and features about working details of the participants including the history of Covid-19 were recorded. The Covid-19 Phobia Scale (C19P-S), The Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), Jenkins Sleep Scale (JSS), and International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Short Form (IPAQ-SF) were used to measure outcomes.ResultsIt was found that the total mean score obtained from the C19P-S of the doctors, physiotherapists, nurse-midwives, and other health professionals in the study were 46.31 +/- 14.64, 50.55 +/- 15.69, 54.82 +/- 19.82, and 54.38 +/- 17.81, respectively. A comparison of the C19P-S results showed that there is a significant difference between health professionals (p < 0.05). Doctors' physical activity levels were statistically related to their coronaphobia levels. Similarly, the coronaphobia levels of physiotherapists, nurses, and midwives were found to have a statistically significant relationship with their fatigue levels.ConclusionIt was found that healthcare professionals in Turkey have moderate coronaphobia levels and it affected some quality of life parameters such as sleep quality, fatigue severity, and physical activity status.