Association of COVID 19 related factors and psychological factors with psychological distress among dental health care workers in government dental tertiary care centers, Kerala

Abstract

COVID-19 pandemic created a huge psychological impact on the dental profession. The risk of transmission is high. This fact increased the fear and anxiety of dental health care workers. To determine the association of COVID-19 related fear and other psychological factors with psychological distress among dental health care workers in Government Dental colleges in Kerala. A cross-sectional study was conducted among dental health care workers to determine the psychological distress using Kesler’s K-6 distress scale. COVID-19 related fear, and psychological factors such as subjective overload (demand scale-short version), and self-efficacy (general self-efficacy scale) were also assessed. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze the main determinants of psychological distress.: Specific psychological distress (SPD) was estimated to be 53.9% [95% CI [59.3-48.3]]. Specific psychological distress was found more among females (79.2%), having BDS qualification (61.5%), house surgeons and junior residents (64.1%), and dental hygienists (25.4%). The main determinants of SPD were poor self-efficacy (AOR-2.985), physical health problems in the last 30 days (AOR-3.136), anxiety about COVID treatment costs (AOR- 2.598), and fear of transmitting the infection to family members (AOR-2.118).It is highly essential to provide adequate psychological support mechanisms that facilitate the early detection of psychological distress among all dental health care workers in Kerala. Interventions to enhance self-efficacy such as skills acquisition programmes should be made mandatory for all dental health care workers. Further studies need to be conducted to assess the long-term psychological impact of the pandemic on dentistry.