Keywords-Covid-19, psychological stress, healthcare workers
COVID-19 ( Coronavirus disease 2019 ), an acute respiratory disease caused by Novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is declared to be a public health emergency of international concern by WHO and declared COVID-19 as a pandemic on March 11, 2020. A large number of pneumonia cases caused by newly identified coronavirus in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. It was initially named as 2019-novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), later officially named as SARS-CoV-2 by WHO on 11 February 2020. The Chinese scientists rapidly isolated this virus from a patient on 7 January 2020. It is a beta coronavirus, enveloped non segmented positive-sense RNA virus. Human to human transmission occurs mainly between family members, including relatives and friends who had contact with patients or incubation carriers. ACE2, Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 found in lower respiratory tract of humans acts as receptor for virus and regulates human to human transmission.8 The clinical diagnosis method of COVID-19 is nucleic acid detection in nasal and throat swab sampling by PCR and further confirmation by next generation sequencing.7
The rapid and extensive spread of COVID-19 has become major cause of concern for the healthcare profession about their personal safety, transmission of disease to family members, stigmatisation and interpersonal isolation.1 The outbreak of COVID-19, caused not only extraordinary public health concerns but also tremendous psychological distress particularly among health care workers. Health care workers on the frontlines are vulnerable to infection.
It is a life threatening and life altering event is considered traumatic enough to elicit post traumatic stress disorder.
COVID-19 is transmitted mainly by respiratory droplets during human to human contact. It has become hazard for healthcare system, including pathogen exposure, long working hours, occupational burnout, stigma, physical and psychological stress, fatigue.2 The differences in working conditions in hospital has lead to differences in psychological behaviour of health care workers. The present scenario of COVID-19 and its effect on health care workers psychology has become critical, this study assessed psychological status of health care system in Department of OBG and its allied branches at RLJH HOSPITAL AND RESEARCH CENTRE.