The impact of isolation on the psychological wellness of COVID-19 discharged patients during the pandemic in Jos, North Central, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Being isolated by whatever means has profound consequences on an individual. Isolation and COVID-19 are double jeopardy worthy of investigating. We therefore sought to determine how isolation impacted on the psychological wellbeing of discharged COVID-19 patients.

Methods: A cross-sectional study on 116 participants who met the discharge criteria of the NCDC interim guidelines within COVID-19 outbreak. A proforma assessed the age, gender, and educational level, length of stay and presence of symptoms of COVID-19. Others assessed were perception of stigma, modes of admission etc. The General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12), screened for mental wellness and assessed the impact of isolation on psychological wellbeing of discharged COVID-19 patients.

Results: One hundred and sixteen (116) discharged COVID-19 participants were screened. The mean age and GHQ-12 scores of the participants were 38.7±14.6 years and 2.88±2.1, respectively. There were more men (59%) with 67.2% of the assessed participants were 'ever married and 43% had tertiary education. Sixty-two percent (62%) had voluntarily admission. About 14% had symptoms on admission. The mean length ofstay was 10.4±4.1 days with 43% having stayed for more than 10 days. Thirty-eight per cent (38%) had psychological problems/ distress. Furthermore, 56% experience a perceived stigma and significantly associated with psychological problems/ distress (p= 0.020). Fifty-six per cent of the assessed were Christians and were significantly associated withpsychological problems/ distress (p= 0.014). There was a significant negative relationship between 'not being aware of stigmatization' and psychological problems/ distress (B= -1.566, p=0.018, CI=0.057-0.769))

Conclusion: Isolation impact considerably on the psychological wellbeing of infected COVID-19 patients.