Displaying publications 21 - 40 of 420 in total

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  1. Alkhawaldeh JMA, Soh KL, Mukhtar FBM, Ooi CP
    J Nurs Manag, 2020 Mar;28(2):209-220.
    PMID: 31887233 DOI: 10.1111/jonm.12938
    AIM: The purpose of this systematic review is to evaluate the effectiveness of stress management interventional programme in reducing occupational stress among nurses.

    BACKGROUND: Nursing professionals are placed continuously at the forefront in the area of health care which makes them highly exposed to professional stress.

    EVALUATION: Randomized controlled trial studies (RCTs) were systematically searched in eight different databases for works published in English from 2011 to 2019; inclusion criteria were applied by two reviewers critically and assessed the risk of bias using Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT).

    KEY ISSUES: The systematic search contributed to the extraction of approximately 10 most relevant RCTs. Most of the RCTs considered in this systematic review revealed that the stress reduction interventions and strategies were effective in reducing the levels of occupational stress experienced by nurses.

    CONCLUSIONS: Current review shows that stress management interventional programme tends to be effective, but additional well-designed RCTs are needed to confirm their effectiveness.

    IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: Implementing stress management interventions within health care organisations are likely to assist nurses in reducing occupational stress and in improving coping strategies used by nurses for dealing with stress.

    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/psychology; Stress, Psychological/therapy
  2. Ghawadra SF, Abdullah KL, Choo WY, Phang CK
    J Clin Nurs, 2019 Nov;28(21-22):3747-3758.
    PMID: 31267619 DOI: 10.1111/jocn.14987
    AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To explore the studies that used interventions based on the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) for decreasing psychological distress among nurses.

    BACKGROUND: Because of the demanding nature of their work, nurses often have significantly high levels of stress, anxiety and depression. MBSR has been reported to be an effective intervention to decrease psychological distress.

    DESIGN: Systematic review.

    METHODS: The databases included were Science Direct, PubMed, EBSCO host, Springer Link and Web of Science from 2002 to 2018. Interventional studies published in English that used MBSR among nurses to reduce their psychological distress were retrieved for review. The PRISMA guideline was used in this systematic review. The included studies were assessed for quality using "The Quality Assessment Tool For Quantitative Studies (QATFQS)."

    RESULTS: Nine studies were found to be eligible and included in this review. Many benefits, including reduced stress, anxiety, depression, burnout and better job satisfaction, were reported in these studies.

    CONCLUSION: The adapted/brief versions of MBSR seem promising for reducing psychological distress in nurses. Future research should include randomised controlled trials with a larger sample size and follow-up studies. There should also be a focus on creative and effective ways of delivering MBSR to nurses.

    RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: The results of this review are substantial for supporting the use of MBSR for nurses' psychological well-being.

    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/psychology; Stress, Psychological/therapy*
  3. Dasor MM, Jafridin AA, Azhar AA, Asma AAA, Manivannan PC, Bilal S, et al.
    Int J Public Health, 2023;68:1604383.
    PMID: 36846156 DOI: 10.3389/ijph.2023.1604383
    Objectives: This study aimed to measure depression, anxiety and stress (DAS) among undergraduate dental students during the COVID-19 pandemic, identify key contributing factors of stress and explore the association of emotional intelligence to DAS. Methods: A multi-centre, cross-sectional study was conducted across four universities in Malaysia. The study administered a questionnaire consisting of the validated Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS), Dental Environment Stress (DES), Emotional Intelligence Scale (EI) and 10 statements assessing COVID-19 specific potential stressor factors. Results: Participants included 791 students across four universities. Abnormal levels of DAS were identified in 60.6%, 66.8% and 42.6% of the study participants, respectively. "Pressure of performance," "Faculty administration" and "Self-efficacy belief" were the highest rated stressors. On-time graduation was the main COVID-19 specific stressor factor. EI was negatively correlated with DAS scores (p < 0.001). Conclusion: The levels of DAS during COVID-19 pandemic in this population is high. However, participants with higher EI presented with lower DAS suggesting that EI may be a form of coping resource and should be enhanced in this population.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/epidemiology; Stress, Psychological/psychology
  4. Mutang JA, Chua BS, Hon KY, Siau CS, Wider W, Ismail R
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2022 Sep 07;19(18).
    PMID: 36141527 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph191811258
    The COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact not only on healthcare systems and economic threats but also on relationships. Due to the massive measures of the Movement Control Order, such as social distancing, strictly limited physical activities, and making adjustments to working from home-merged with the pandemic's fear-romantic partners may face challenges that affect the quality of their relationships. The purpose of this study was to (i) identify stressors experienced by participants during the COVID-19 lockdown, (ii) evaluate participants'psychological well-being before and during the lockdown, and (iii) see if participants' perceived relationship quality differed before and during the lockdown. An online self-report questionnaire was used to recruit 334 adults (58.1 percent female, 41.9 percent male) with partners (married = 304, engaged = 12, and in committed relationships = 17). Participants were asked about stressors they encountered as a result of COVID-19 using an open-ended question. The Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21) were used to assess mental health, and the Perceived Relationship Quality Component (PRQC) Inventory was used to assess relationship quality. According to the findings, the top three common stressors reported by participants were financial problems, restricted movement, and fear of COVID-19 infection. Participants reported significantly higher levels of stress, anxiety, and depression during the lockdown than before. The findings also revealed that participants' relationship quality improved during the lockdown compared to before the lockdown. The current study contributes by providing information on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health and the quality of couples' relationships during the pandemic.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/epidemiology; Stress, Psychological/psychology
  5. Islam A, Mahbuba P, Ahmed T, Haque S
    PLoS One, 2023;18(3):e0283422.
    PMID: 36952537 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0283422
    BACKGROUND: People worldwide have experienced various mental health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study investigates the modifiable and nonmodifiable predictors of anxiety, depression, and stress among Bangladeshi participants after one year of the pandemic.

    METHOD: A large group of adult participants (N = 1897), recruited from eight administrative divisions in Bangladesh, completed an online survey in May and June 2021 when the Movement Control Order was in place. We used the Beck Anxiety Inventory, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, and Perceived Stress Scale-4 to assess the participants' anxiety, depression, and stress. We also gave the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale and Life-Orientation Test-Revised to assess mindfulness and optimism.

    RESULTS: The results revealed that the prevalence rates for anxiety and depression were 62.5% and 45.3%, respectively. Multivariate analyses showed that several nonmodifiable factors, such as those who were students, unmarried and females, and those living in the Northern region (Rajshahi and Mymensingh division) and dwelling in the rural areas, suffered from worse mental health (accounted for 5%-23% of the variances in the mental health outcome scores). Modifiable factors accounted for an additional 10%-25% of the variances in the same outcome variables. Adults with higher mindfulness and optimism, living in the country's Southern region (Chattogram division) and those who took both vaccine doses and had no history of mental illness reported better mental health.

    CONCLUSION: Anxiety, depression, and stress remained high in Bangladeshi adults after one year of the pandemic. The community-based interventions should aim to increase the mindfulness and optimism levels among the sufferers. More accelerated vaccination programs across the country could protect people from suffering from overall mental distress.

    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/epidemiology; Stress, Psychological/psychology
  6. Farah IO, Hasan MN
    Mymensingh Med J, 2024 Jan;33(1):286-293.
    PMID: 38163805
    Increasing age is the main risk factor for chronic illnesses. The illnesses are not only physical, but also affect their psychological well-being and this has a significant effect on their quality of life. Numerous researches have shown that there is high prevalence of psychological distress in different medical and surgical patients while considerable percentage that is not detected by doctors. The study was conducted to identify the prevalence and risk factors of psychological distress in older people seeking health care at hospital in Dhaka city. This was a cross-sectional study conducted in the Bangladesh Association for the Aged and Institution of Geriatric Medicine (Bangladesh Probin Hospital) in Dhaka city, Bangladesh. A total of 451 older people seeking for healthcare was interviewed face-to-face using a standard Bengali validated General Health Care Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12). Recruitment of respondents was based on the systematic random sampling of the older people aged at or more than 60 years who were seeking health care at hospital in Dhaka city. A total of 59.65% (n=269) participants were found to have psychological distress. Age of more than 75, education up to secondary level, being unemployment, living alone, respondents with lower socioeconomic background, not having spouse, history of bereavement was found to be significantly associated with psychological distress. Other factors such as smokers, respondents who consume alcohol, physically inactive older people, older people with multiple comorbidities and having diagnosed with a disease more than 6 months were found to be associated with psychological distress. Majority of the older patients with physical illness were distressed. The prevalence of psychological distress among older peoples seeking for healthcare with multiple comorbidities who seek care in the hospital was very high (59.65%). Age, education, marital status, history of bereavement, smoking, alcohol use, physical activity and presence of multiple comorbidities were independent determinants of psychological distress among older people seeking for healthcare. Encouraging healthy lifestyle through cessation of smoking and alcohol use and increasing physical activity could be an effective step in reducing psychological comorbidities among older people seeking for healthcare.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/epidemiology; Stress, Psychological/psychology
  7. Aniza I, Malini R, Khalib L
    Med J Malaysia, 2010 Jun;65(2):103-7.
    PMID: 23756791 MyJurnal
    A cross-sectional study on organizational factors that influences job stress was carried out among Medical Laboratory Technologists (MLT) in Klang Valley's Hospitals. There were three organizational factors that were measured, interpersonal factor, job condition and career development. A total of 249 respondents participated in this study, 126 were from the private hospitals and 123 from the government hospitals. The prevalence of stress was found higher in the private hospitals with the percentage of 16.7% compared to the government hospitals of 15.4%. All three organizational factors were significantly associated with job stress (interpersonal factor p <0.001, job condition p<0.001 and career development p < 0.001). Management team in hospitals as well as the laboratory managers should introduce stress prevention programmes to assist MLTs in stress management.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological*
  8. Azhar MZ
    Med J Malaysia, 2004 Jun;59(2):143-5.
    PMID: 15559161
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological*
  9. Salam A, Mahadevan R, Abdul Rahman A, Abdullah N, Abd Harith AA, Shan CP
    Pak J Med Sci, 2015 Jan-Feb;31(1):169-73.
    PMID: 25878637 DOI: 10.12669/pjms.311.6473
    OBJECTIVE: To identify the stress-prevalence and coping-strategies among University Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) medical students.
    METHODS: This was an observational study conducted among 234 UKM first and third year medical students. Standardized questionnaire on stress and coping strategies was used. Stress data was related to subjective experiences on some positive and negative adjectives such as tense, relaxed etc. Positive adjectives were measured by sign "++" and "+" scoring "1" while stress-negative adjectives were measured by sign "?" and "-" scoring "0". Forty-eight coping items under task, emotion and avoidance strategies were measured using 5-point Likert-scale.
    RESULTS: Overall stress-prevalence was 49%. Female and Malay respondents were more stressed. Significant differences of stress-level was observed between Malays and non Malays in first year (p=0.04) and in third year (p=0.01). Most common strategies used to cope stress was task-oriented while emotion oriented was least.
    CONCLUSION: Stress-prevalence and stress-level in UKM medical students was high. Most of the respondents coped stress using task-oriented strategies. Stressor and its effective management must be ensured. Educational institutions should act as a creative designer of learning environment to get relieve from educational stressor.
    KEYWORDS: Coping strategies; Medical students; Stress prevalence
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological*
  10. Ong LC, Chandran V, Peng R
    J Paediatr Child Health, 1999 Aug;35(4):358-362.
    PMID: 28871653 DOI: 10.1046/j.1440-1754.1999.00383.x
    OBJECTIVE: To compare parenting stress among Malaysian mothers of children with mental retardation and a control group, and to determine factors associated with stress.
    METHODOLOGY: Seventy-five mothers of children with mental retardation aged 4-12 years and 75 controls (those without disabilities who attended the walk-in paediatric clinic) participated in the Parenting Stress Index (PSI). Intelligence quotient (IQ) and Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) scores, together with sociodemographic data, were entered into a multiple stepwise regression analysis, using the PSI as the criterion.
    RESULTS: Mothers of children with mental retardation scored significantly higher than control subjects in both the child-related domain (difference between means 26.1, 95% confidence interval 19.6-32.5) and parent-related domain (difference between means 15.0, 95% confidence interval 7.9-22.1) of the PSI. The total child behaviour scores from the CBCL (P < 0.01), IQ scores (P < 0.01) and sibship size (P < 0.01) were associated with child-related domain scores. For the parent-related domain, CBCL (P < 0.01) and IQ scores (P = 0.01) remained important factors but Chinese ethnicity (P < 0.01) and maternal unemployment (P < 0.01) were also significant predictors of stress.
    CONCLUSION: A large proportion of mothers of children with mental retardation experienced substantial parenting stress, especially Chinese and unemployed mothers, and this warrants appropriate intervention.
    Study site: Outpatient clinic, Paediatric Institute, Hospital Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological*
  11. Hag A, Handayani D, Pillai T, Mantoro T, Kit MH, Al-Shargie F
    Sensors (Basel), 2021 Sep 20;21(18).
    PMID: 34577505 DOI: 10.3390/s21186300
    Exposure to mental stress for long period leads to serious accidents and health problems. To avoid negative consequences on health and safety, it is very important to detect mental stress at its early stages, i.e., when it is still limited to acute or episodic stress. In this study, we developed an experimental protocol to induce two different levels of stress by utilizing a mental arithmetic task with time pressure and negative feedback as the stressors. We assessed the levels of stress on 22 healthy subjects using frontal electroencephalogram (EEG) signals, salivary alpha-amylase level (AAL), and multiple machine learning (ML) classifiers. The EEG signals were analyzed using a fusion of functional connectivity networks estimated by the Phase Locking Value (PLV) and temporal and spectral domain features. A total of 210 different features were extracted from all domains. Only the optimum multi-domain features were used for classification. We then quantified stress levels using statistical analysis and seven ML classifiers. Our result showed that the AAL level was significantly increased (p < 0.01) under stress condition in all subjects. Likewise, the functional connectivity network demonstrated a significant decrease under stress, p < 0.05. Moreover, we achieved the highest stress classification accuracy of 93.2% using the Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier. Other classifiers produced relatively similar results.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/diagnosis
  12. Ponnusaami Subramaniam, Siti Akasia Ahmad, Aishvarya Sinniah, Raynuha Mahadevan
    MyJurnal
    Societal dynamics and increased public demands on education have produced adverse stressful classroom situation that have led to increase emotional and physical disabilities among teacher. The main objective of this descriptive study was to identify the causes of occupational stress amongst secondary school teachers. This study also conducted in order to determine the suitable ways and strategies at helping teachers to cope with the work related pressures that have increased during the past decade. The samples of this study were 100 teachers from four secondary schools in Dungun District, Terengganu. The data were descriptively analyzed based on the responds on a set of questionnaires, checklist and 20 interview sessions conducted for exploration of coping strategy with 20 out of 100 teachers. Based on the finding, it can be concluded that interpersonal relations, physical conditions and job interest contribute towards workrelated stress among teachers. Also discussed the 10 most frequently used coping strategies by teachers. Therefore, there are suggesting measures, which teachers may take to help them cope more effectively with potentially stressful situations at school.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological*
  13. Hag A, Handayani D, Altalhi M, Pillai T, Mantoro T, Kit MH, et al.
    Sensors (Basel), 2021 Dec 15;21(24).
    PMID: 34960469 DOI: 10.3390/s21248370
    In real-life applications, electroencephalogram (EEG) signals for mental stress recognition require a conventional wearable device. This, in turn, requires an efficient number of EEG channels and an optimal feature set. This study aims to identify an optimal feature subset that can discriminate mental stress states while enhancing the overall classification performance. We extracted multi-domain features within the time domain, frequency domain, time-frequency domain, and network connectivity features to form a prominent feature vector space for stress. We then proposed a hybrid feature selection (FS) method using minimum redundancy maximum relevance with particle swarm optimization and support vector machines (mRMR-PSO-SVM) to select the optimal feature subset. The performance of the proposed method is evaluated and verified using four datasets, namely EDMSS, DEAP, SEED, and EDPMSC. To further consolidate, the effectiveness of the proposed method is compared with that of the state-of-the-art metaheuristic methods. The proposed model significantly reduced the features vector space by an average of 70% compared with the state-of-the-art methods while significantly increasing overall detection performance.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/diagnosis
  14. Sanusi SY, Al-Batayneh OB, Khader YS, Saddki N
    Eur J Dent Educ, 2022 Feb;26(1):76-84.
    PMID: 33527620 DOI: 10.1111/eje.12674
    INTRODUCTION: Smartphone addiction has been associated with sleeping problems and psychological anxiety. However, little is known about the association of smartphone addiction, sleep quality and perceived stress amongst university students particularly in dentistry. This study investigated the association of these variables amongst dental students in a Jordanian dental faculty.

    MATERIALS AND METHODS: A sample of 420 undergraduate dental students enrolled for academic year 2017/2018 at the Jordan University of Science and Technology participated in this study. They were given a set of self-administered questionnaires which consisted of questions regarding demographic information, characteristics of smartphone use, assessment of smartphone addiction, sleep quality as well as perceived stress.

    RESULTS: The mean Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS) score amongst Jordanian dental students was high (109.9 ± 23.8). The correlation between SAS and Global Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) score was significant (r = 0.137, P =0.005) indicating that the higher the smartphone addiction level, the poorer the quality of sleep. Similarly, a significant correlation was found between Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10) score and Global PSQI score (r = 0.348, P stress experienced poorer sleep quality. Year 3 students (clinical year), smartphone addiction and perceived stress were determinants of sleep quality.

    CONCLUSIONS: Dental students who have high levels of smartphone addiction or high perceived stress levels experienced poor sleep quality. Identifying smartphone addicts amongst students as well as stressors are imperative measures to allow timely assistance and support in the form of educational campaigns, counselling, psychotherapy and stress management.

    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/epidemiology
  15. Zhang MWB, Ho RCM, Ng CG
    Technol Health Care, 2017 Dec 04;25(6):1173-1176.
    PMID: 28946598 DOI: 10.3233/THC-170868
    In psychiatry, mindfulness based intervention has been increasingly popular as a means of psychosocial intervention over the last decade. With the alvanche of technological advances, there has been a myriad of mindfulness based applications. Recent reviews have highlighted how these applications are lacking in functionalities and without demonstrated efficacy. Other reviews have emphasized that there is a need to take into consideration the design of an application, due to placebo effects. It is the aim of this technical note to illustrate how the 5-Minutes Mindfulness application, which is an application designed to provide mindfulness exercises to relieve distress and suffering amongst palliative patients, have been conceptualized. The conceptualized application builds on previous evidence of the efficacy of 5-Minutes Mindfulness demonstrated by pilot and randomized trials. In terms of design, the currently conceptualized application has been designed such that placebo effects could be controlled for.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/therapy*
  16. Ostovar S, Modarresi Chahardehi A, Mohd Hashim IH, Othman A, Kruk J, Griffiths MD
    Eur J Cancer Care (Engl), 2022 Nov;31(6):e13669.
    PMID: 35934684 DOI: 10.1111/ecc.13669
    Psychological distress (including depression and anxiety) is common in the first years of cancer diagnosis but can differ by country and region. The aim of the present paper was to review the prevalence of psychological distress among cancer patients in the Southeast Asia (SEA) region. A systematic literature search was carried out using several databases (i.e., PubMed, PsychARTICLES, Embase, CINAHI, Web of Sciences, Plus, Scopus, and AHMED). Papers originally published in English language were taken into consideration if they (i) were published from 2010 to 2021 and (ii) reported the prevalence of psychological distress among patients with different types of cancer. A total of 23 studies met the inclusion criteria. The most frequently employed psychometric instrument for anxiety and depression screening was the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). The prevalence of anxiety (ranging from 7% to 88%) was wider than that of depression (ranging from 3% to 65.5%) among patients with different types of cancer and living in various countries in the SEA region. The overall prevalence rate of psychological distress among cancer patients from the SEA region was not fundamentally very different from that of general populations. These findings provide useful information for health professionals and cancer patients to understand the negative role of psychological distress in quality of life and health. The research findings demonstrate the importance of counselling for psychological distress among cancer patients as means of effectively resolving their psychological problems and ultimately improving the quality of oncology medical care. Clinical recommendations for cancer management should incorporate the early identification of (and therapy for) psychological distress, as well as their monitoring during treatment.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/psychology
  17. Mansor M, Chong MC, Chui PL, Hamdan M, Lim CC
    Psychol Health Med, 2023 Jul;28(6):1549-1561.
    PMID: 36120729 DOI: 10.1080/13548506.2022.2124288
    This scoping review describes the research-based mindfulness intervention on anxiety, distress, and depression. The search strategy retrieved articles published in English from 2014 to 2019 and were retrieved across Scopus, Web of Science, Science Direct, CINAHL, and Google Scholar. The PRISMA-Scr checklist is a tool to evaluate the quality of the articles. The selection criteria initially included all original articles in English, with 1,527 that were related to mindfulness intervention for anxiety, distress, and depression. A total of 490 full texts were retrieved, and after the abstracts were reviewed, 124 full-text articles were included for eligibility, and the final eight studies were determined. The articles were reviewed and screened for relevance to mindfulness intervention in reducing anxiety, distress, and depression among those with chronic diseases. The results have shown that mindfulness intervention reduces anxiety, distress, and depression among patients with chronic diseases. The review contributes further insight into the fact that mindfulness intervention is also appropriate for other conditions to facilitate reducing psychological symptoms.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/psychology
  18. Norhayati MN, Che Yusof R, Azman MY
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2021 Aug 30;18(17).
    PMID: 34501747 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18179157
    COVID-19 has impacted people psychologically globally, including healthcare providers. Anxiety, depression, and stress are the most common impacts that have affected these people. Thus, this study was aimed to ascertain the estimated prevalence of psychological impacts among healthcare providers in the Asian region. A systematic search was performed in the MEDLINE, CINAHL, and Scopus databases for original research articles published between 2020 and April 2021. Only studies published in English were included. The quality of data was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute Meta-Analysis, and the analysis was performed using generic inverse variance with a random-effects model by Review Manager software. A total of 80 studies across 18 countries in Asia region were pooled to assess the data prevalence on anxiety (34.81% (95% CI: 30.80%, 38.83%)), depression (34.61% (95% CI: 30.87%, 38.36%)), stress (31.72% (95% CI: 21.25%, 42.18%)), insomnia (37.89% (95% CI: 25.43%, 50.35%)), and post-traumatic stress disorder (15.29% (95% CI: 11.43%, 19.15%)). Subgroup analyses were conducted across regions, type of healthcare providers, sex, and occupation. This review has identified a high prevalence of anxiety, depression, stress, and insomnia but a low prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder among healthcare providers in Asia regions. Effective intervention support programs are urgently needed to improve psychological health of healthcare providers and maintaining the health system.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/epidemiology
  19. Pang NTP, Nold Imon G, Johoniki E, Mohd Kassim MA, Omar A, Syed Abdul Rahim SS, et al.
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2021 Jul 05;18(13).
    PMID: 34281147 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18137210
    COVID-19 stress and fear of COVID-19 is an increasingly researched construct in the general population. However, its prevalence and association with sociodemographic factors and psychological process variables has not been explored in frontline workers under surveillance in a Bornean population. This study was a cross-sectional study using a sociodemographic questionnaire incorporating two specific epidemiological risk variables, namely specific questions about COVID-19 surveillance status (persons under investigation (PUI), persons under surveillance (PUS), and positive cases) and the nature of frontline worker status. Furthermore, five other instruments were used, with three measuring psychopathology (namely depression, anxiety and stress, fear of COVID-19, and stress due to COVID-19) and two psychological process variables (namely psychological flexibility and mindfulness). Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests were performed to assess if there were significant differences in psychopathology and psychological process variables between sociodemographic and epidemiological risk variables. Hierarchical multiple regression was further performed, with depression, anxiety, and stress as dependent variables. There were significant differences in the fear of COVID-19 between positive cases, PUI, and PUS. The fear of COVID-19 scores were higher in positive cases compared to in PUS and PUI groups. Upon hierarchical multiple regression, mindfulness and psychological flexibility were significant predictors of depression, anxiety, and stress after controlling for sociodemographic and epidemiological risk factors. This study demonstrates that exposure to COVID-19 as persons under investigation or surveillance significantly increases the fear of COVID-19, and brief psychological interventions that can positively influence mindfulness and psychological flexibility should be prioritized for these at-risk groups to prevent undue psychological morbidity in the long run.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/epidemiology
  20. Ji X, Guo X, Soh KL, Japar S, He L
    Nurs Health Sci, 2024 Jun;26(2):e13113.
    PMID: 38566439 DOI: 10.1111/nhs.13113
    Elevated stress levels are related to diminished mental health, potentially leading to decreased well-being and performance of nursing students. While researchers have focused on developing stress management interventions, there is a need to synthesize the evidence. A systematic review with meta-analysis was conducted to assess the evidence for the effectiveness of stress management interventions in nursing students. A systematic literature search identified controlled stress management interventions employing a validated psychological or physiological stress measure. Forty-one studies were included, with 36 forming a pool of 2715 participants in the meta-analysis. The overall effect on psychological stress was positive. Intervention type, delivery modality, intervention duration in weeks, and number of sessions were moderators of intervention effectiveness, with more significant effects for mind-body programs, on-site delivery methods, durations of 9-12 weeks, and 15-30 sessions. For physiological stress, the biomarkers of blood pressure, heart rate, and cortisol levels decreased significantly. Future research is necessary for promising outcomes related to currently underrepresented indicators and to investigate the long-term effects of interventions.
    Matched MeSH terms: Stress, Psychological/complications
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