Consequences of COVID19-pandemic lockdown on Italian occupational physicians' psychosocial health

COVID-19 was declared a pandemic on March 12, 2020. Italy has been the most affectedcountry in the world, right after China. Healthcare workers (HCWs) were among the hardesthit by this event from both a working and psychological point of view. The aim of this webbasedcross-sectional study is to assess the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic onItalian Occupational Physicians’ well-being and psychological distress, in relation to demographicand occupational characteristic, lifestyle and habits during the lockdown period. Weconducted a web-based cross-sectional survey questionnaire from April 1 to April 21st,2020. To evaluate the level of psychological distress and the level of well-being, the generalHealth Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) and the WHO-5 Wellbeing Index were utilized. Sincethe statistical assumptions were respected, we proceeded with an analysis of variance(ANOVA) to ascertain the differences between the averages of the scores of the GHQ-12.Doctors who live in the most affected regions have a prevalence of psychological distresshigher than their colleagues from the rest of Italy. ANOVA shows significant differencesrelating to the female gender, and to the life changes provoked by the lockdown for examplenot feeling sheltered at home or suffering from loneliness. This study showed a high prevalenceof psychological distress in occupational physicians. To prevent the occurrence ofmental disorders among Occupational Physicians, it is urgent to put in place policies of psychologicalsupport and well-being preservation.