TY - JOUR
T1 - Level of fear towards COVID-19 and its determinants among healthcare providers in Malaysia
T2 - A cross-sectional study
AU - Ching, Siew Mooi
AU - Cheong, Ai Theng
AU - Yee, Anne
AU - Thurasamy, Ramayah
AU - Lim, Poh Ying
AU - Ismail, Irmi Zarina
AU - Mohammad, Nik Mazlina
AU - Ho, Bee Kiau
AU - Ng, Jun Ying
AU - Tan, Siow Foon
AU - Rashid, Zienna Zufida Zainol
AU - Jogulu, Sathya Rao
AU - Lee, Kai Wei
AU - Taher, Sri Wahyu
N1 - Funding Information:
This research received funding from the Family Medicine Specialist Association (FMSA [5] 02/20-22). The funder had no role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish or manuscript preparation.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023, Academy of Family Physicians of Malaysia. All rights reserved.
PY - 2023
Y1 - 2023
N2 - Introduction: Malaysia is one of the hardest-hit countries by COVID-19 in Asia. The rapidly rising number of cases had sparked fear among healthcare providers. This study aimed to assess the determinants of fear towards COVID-19 among healthcare providers in primary care settings. Methods: This online-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 1280 healthcare providers aged ≥18 years from 30 primary care clinics in the state of Selangor, Malaysia. The Fear of COVID-19 Scale was used to assess the level of fear, and the results were analysed using multiple linear regression. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 36 years, and the mean working experience was 11 years. The majority of the respondents were women (82.4%) and Malays (82.3%). The factors that were significantly correlated with higher levels of fear were underlying chronic disease (ß=1.12, P=0.002, 95% confidence interval [CI]=0.08, 3.15), concern about mortality from COVID-19 (ß=3.3, P<0.001, 95% CI=0.19, 7.22), higher risk of exposure (ß=0.8, P<0.001, 95% CI=0.14, 5.91), concern for self at work (ß=2.8, P=0.002, 95% CI=0.08, 3.10) and work as a nurse (ß=3.6, P<0.001, 95% CI=0.30, 7.52), medical laboratory worker (ß=3.0, P<0.001, 95% CI=0.12, 4.27) and healthcare assistant (ß=3.9, P<0.001, 95% CI=0.17, 5.73). The level of fear was inversely correlated with a higher work-related stress management score (ß=−0.9, P<0.001, 95% CI=−0.14, −5.07) and a higher sleep quality score (ß=−1.8, P<0.001, 95% CI=−0.28, −10.41). Conclusion: Family physicians should be vigilant and identify healthcare providers at risk of developing COVID-19-related fear to initiate early mental health intervention.
AB - Introduction: Malaysia is one of the hardest-hit countries by COVID-19 in Asia. The rapidly rising number of cases had sparked fear among healthcare providers. This study aimed to assess the determinants of fear towards COVID-19 among healthcare providers in primary care settings. Methods: This online-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 1280 healthcare providers aged ≥18 years from 30 primary care clinics in the state of Selangor, Malaysia. The Fear of COVID-19 Scale was used to assess the level of fear, and the results were analysed using multiple linear regression. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 36 years, and the mean working experience was 11 years. The majority of the respondents were women (82.4%) and Malays (82.3%). The factors that were significantly correlated with higher levels of fear were underlying chronic disease (ß=1.12, P=0.002, 95% confidence interval [CI]=0.08, 3.15), concern about mortality from COVID-19 (ß=3.3, P<0.001, 95% CI=0.19, 7.22), higher risk of exposure (ß=0.8, P<0.001, 95% CI=0.14, 5.91), concern for self at work (ß=2.8, P=0.002, 95% CI=0.08, 3.10) and work as a nurse (ß=3.6, P<0.001, 95% CI=0.30, 7.52), medical laboratory worker (ß=3.0, P<0.001, 95% CI=0.12, 4.27) and healthcare assistant (ß=3.9, P<0.001, 95% CI=0.17, 5.73). The level of fear was inversely correlated with a higher work-related stress management score (ß=−0.9, P<0.001, 95% CI=−0.14, −5.07) and a higher sleep quality score (ß=−1.8, P<0.001, 95% CI=−0.28, −10.41). Conclusion: Family physicians should be vigilant and identify healthcare providers at risk of developing COVID-19-related fear to initiate early mental health intervention.
KW - COVID-19
KW - Doctor
KW - Fear
KW - Malaysia
KW - Medical assistant
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85175010143&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.51866/oa.238
DO - 10.51866/oa.238
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85175010143
SN - 1985-207X
VL - 18
JO - Malaysian Family Physician
JF - Malaysian Family Physician
M1 - 56
ER -
