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Cited by 536COVID-19 and Mental HealthHealthcare professionals’ stress and burnoutMaternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 93 of the 93 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Prevalence of depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder in health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Open access
Li, Yufei, Scherer, Nathaniel, Felix, Lambert, Kuper, Hannah·2021·PLOS ONE
DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0246454PMC PMC7946321
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Abstract

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic has placed health care workers under psychological stress. Previous reviews show a high prevalence of mental disorders among health care workers, but these need updating and inclusion of studies written in Chinese. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to provide updated prevalence estimates for depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, benefitting from the inclusion of studies published in Chinese. Methods: Systematic search of EMBASE, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Global Health, Web of Science, CINAHL, Google Scholar and the Chinese databases SinoMed, WanfangMed, CNKI and CQVIP, for studies conducted between December 2019 and August 2020 on the prevalence of depression, anxiety and PTSD in health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Studies published in both English and Chinese were included. Results: Data on the prevalence of moderate depression, anxiety and PTSD was pooled across 65 studies involving 97,333 health care workers across 21 countries. The pooled prevalence of depression was 21.7% (95% CI, 18.3%-25.2%), of anxiety 22.1% (95% CI, 18.2%-26.3%), and of PTSD 21.5% (95% CI, 10.5%-34.9%). Prevalence estimates are also provided for a mild classification of each disorder. Pooled prevalence estimates of depression and anxiety were highest in studies conducted in the Middle-East (34.6%; 28.9%). Subgroup and meta-regression analyses were conducted across covariates, including sampling method and outcome measure. Conclusions: This systematic review and meta-analysis has identified a high prevalence of moderate depression, anxiety and PTSD among health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Appropriate support is urgently needed. The response would benefit from additional research on which interventions are effective at mitigating these risks.

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Crossref · 10.1371/journal.pone.0246454

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Fig 1 PRISMA flowchart.
Fig 1 PRISMA flowchart.CC BY · PubMed Central
Fig 2 Meta-analysis and pooled estimate of moderate depression in health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fig 2 Meta-analysis and pooled estimate of moderate depression in health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.CC BY · PubMed Central
Fig 3 Meta-analysis and pooled estimate of moderate anxiety in health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fig 3 Meta-analysis and pooled estimate of moderate anxiety in health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.CC BY · PubMed Central
Fig 4 Meta-analysis and pooled estimate of moderate PTSD in health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fig 4 Meta-analysis and pooled estimate of moderate PTSD in health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.CC BY · PubMed Central

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Research works printed but not linked: 14

  1. 2017, Depression and Other Common Mental Disorders: Global Health Estimates
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Metadata

Authors
Li, Y., Scherer, N., Felix, L., & Kuper, H.
Affiliations
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (GB)
Corresponding author
Scherer, Nathaniel
ORCID
Venue
PLOS ONE
Publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Published
2021-03-10
Volume
16
Issue
3
Pages
e0246454
ISSN
1932-6203 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1371/journal.pone.0246454
PMC
PMC7946321
OpenAlex
W3133985703
Cited by
536
References
90
Citations by year
2026: 25 · 2025: 67 · 2024: 91 · 2023: 127 · 2022: 161 · 2021: 63
FWCI
14.67
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • PLoS ONE (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • LSHTM Research Online (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) (submittedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › COVID-19 and Mental Health
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Healthcare professionals’ stress and burnout
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
Keywords
depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, healthcare workers, COVID-19 pandemic, prevalence, psychological stress, mental health, workplace mental health
MeSH terms
COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Anxiety, Anxiety Disorders, Depression, Depressive Disorder, Health Personnel, Humans, Mental Health, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Stress, Psychological, Prevalence, Pandemics

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