Association Between Perceived Risk Towards Exposure to Covid-19 Infection and Depressive Symptoms Among Hospital Frontliners During Covid-19 Pandemic in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.

Introduction: During the Covid-19 pandemic, hospital frontliners faced serious risks of getting infected with the potentially fatal Covid-19 infection and their perception of Covid-19 exposure and depressive symptoms could affect their health and reduce their work quality and their productivity as hospital frontliners. The study aimed to determine the prevalence of depressive symptoms and their association with the perceived risk of exposure to Covid-19 infection. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was designed and carried out from May to June 2021. The universal sampling method was applied, and 454 people took part, giving a response rate of 98.7 per cent. Patient Health Questionnaire-9 items were used as a validated self-administered questionnaire, and the data were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 27. Results: Age, female gender, ethnicity, level of education, marital status, and chronic medical ailment had a statistically significant relationship with depressive symptoms. Perceived factors such as difficulty getting the mask (p=0.01), discomfort wearing the mask (p=0.01), and feeling vulnerable to infection after close contact with confirmed/suspected Covid-19 patients (p=0.04) were found to have a statistically significant association with depressive symptoms among the hospital frontliners. In this study, 40.2 percent of hospital frontliners were found with depression symptoms. Conclusion: The prevalence of depression symptoms among hospital frontliners indicates the need for it to be highlighted and measures to be taken accordingly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]