Abstracto

Assessment of Mental Health Status of Public of Pakistan During The Corona Virus Pandemic

Dua Ahmed , Zeeshan Aijaz, Iqra Ahmed ,Chanchal Maheshwari

Abstract Background: The corona (COVID-19) pandemic has become a global concern and has impacted the people worldwide. The research data is needed to formulate psychological interventions to lower the anxiety. The aim of the study was to assess the anxiety and stress levels among the general public of Karachi during COVID-pandemic. Method: From 2020/04/29 to 2020/05/03 we collected data through online survey. Mental health status was assessed by the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Results: This study included 281 respondents from Karachi. In total 37.91% of respondents reported sever to extremely severe anxiety symptoms and 23.13% reported severe to extremely severe stress symptoms. Conclusion: During the outbreak of corona pandemic, more than one-third respondents reported severe to extremely severe anxiety and more than one fifth reported severe to extremely severe stress. Male gender, housewives, undergraduate education level was associated with high anxiety and stress wherever Awareness related to COVID, Specific up-to-date and accurate health information and applying certain precautionary measures were associated with lower levels of stress, anxiety and depression. Our findings will help to formulate psychological interventions to improve the mental health of vulnerable groups and lower the psychological impact of the outbreak.