Covid-19, Anxiety, and Hopelessness: Quality of Life among Healthcare Workers in Turkey

Object: To investigate the effect of anxiety and hopelessness on the quality of life of healthcare workers.Methods: This cross-sectional, online questionnaire-based study was conducted between August 31 - September 30, 2020, with 729 healthcare workers in Turkey. The Sociodemographic Information Form, the Turkish version of the Shorter Version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life Instrument (WHOQOL-BREF-TR), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-I) and the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS) were used for data collection.Results: The study showed that hopelessness, the weekly working time, fatigue, and the workload experienced by healthcare workers negatively affected their quality of life, and those who needed knowledge on various issues to improve their skills had lower quality of life and higher anxiety and hopelessness levels. Conclusion: Protective measures should be taken for the health of healthcare workers against the adverse effects of the intense anxiety, hopelessness, and workload during the pandemic period. To achieve sustainable success in the provision of health services, healthcare workers must be psychologically healthy. Therefore, taking protective measures to improve the resilience of healthcare workers in all health-related areas should be a priority.