Effect of pandemic outbreak on psychological levels and the predictors of mental health in health professionals.

The COVID-19 pandemic might impact the psychological levels and predictors of mental health among health professionals. This study aims to investigate the impact on psychological levels and identify the predictors of stress, depression, anxiety, and burnout levels among health professionals in Thailand. A total of 289 participants were enrolled in this cross-sectional study and completed online questionnaires, including the stress assessment form (ST-5), the depression assessment form (PHQ-9), the anxiety assessment form (GAD-7), and the burnout assessment form. The correlation between factors and psychological levels was analysed using the Chi-Square test and Pearson's Product-Moment Correlation. Multiple linear regression was applied to predict mental health levels. Internal factors related to psychological health include age and gender. External factors associated with psychological health include occupation, marital status, income, expenditure, work experience, work position in dramatic infection situations, daily and monthly work duration, and sleep duration. The results suggested moderate to high positive correlation among stress, depression, anxiety, emotional exhaustion, and cynicism scores (p-value <0.001). However, professional efficacy indicated a significant negative correlation with stress. Moreover, sleep duration and work duration were significant predictors of stress (5.2%). Only sleep duration was significant predictor of depression (3.6%), anxiety (2.2%), and burnout (1.4%). Work duration could predict stress, while sleep duration could predict all psychological aspects. Additionally, sleep duration was the major factor underlying physical stress, depression, anxiety, and burnout among health professionals.