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Dryad

Depression among healthcare workers in Lusaka, Zambia during the COVID-19 pandemic

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Mar 27, 2023 version files 107.83 KB

Abstract

Objectives: We sought to assess depression among healthcare workers (HCWs) in the context of COVID-19 in Lusaka Province, Zambia.

Design: This cross-sectional study is nested within the Person Centered Public Health for HIV Treatment in Zambia (PCPH), a cluster-randomized trial to assess HIV care and outcomes.

Setting: The research was conducted in 24 government-run health facilities during 11 August – 15 October 2020 during the first wave of the COVID-19 epidemic in Lusaka, Zambia.

Participants: We used convenience sampling to recruit HCW participants who were previously enrolled in the PCPH study, had more than 6 months of experience working at the facility and were voluntarily willing to participate.

Primary outcome measures: We implemented the well-validated Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) to assess HCW depression. We used mixed-effects, adjusted Poisson regression to estimate the marginal probability of HCW experiencing depression that may warrant intervention (PHQ-9 score ≥5) by healthcare facility.