Nonspecific Distress is Associated with Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Among Healthcare Providers During the COVID-19 Pandemic

During the COVID-19 pandemic, approximately 25% of healthcare providers (HCP) worldwide were reported to have experienced symptoms associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). While longitudinal studies have identified factors associated with PTSD in this group of essential workers, associations with emotional distress trajectories have not been studied. The goal of this study was to determine if non-specific emotional distress trajectories in HCP, as measured four times with the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) spaced by an average of 180 days between March 2021 and December 2023, were associated with PTSD symptoms, as measured by the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), measured in 2022 or 2023. Of 441 participants, 105 (24.0%) had scores indicative of concern for PTSD. Five K10 trajectories were identified including resilient (n=111, 25.2%), chronically distressed (131, 29.7%), delayed onset of distress (43, 9.8%), recovery (83, 18.8%), and mutable (73, 16.6%). Compared with resilient HCP, those who were chronically distressed were 6.9 (95% confidence interval (CI) 3.7, 13.0) times more likely to have IES-R scores indicative of concern for PTSD, significantly greater than the risks of 2.6-4.0 times greater for HCP with other trajectories. In future pandemics ongoing assessment of HCP distress will help ensure that those who are distressed are quickly identified so evidence-based mitigation strategies can be provided.