Many suffer from anxiety, distress

Even after 18 months since the outbreak of the pandemic, city psychiatrists are getting a lot of HCWS who are suffering from anxiety, distress and depression due to the pandemic.

A psychiatric clinic, Aavishkar Center, along with Mediamedic Communication started a mental care helpline number—9172284386 for HCWS in June. Since, its launch, the helpline has received 632 calls. Almost 90% of the callers complained of anxiety, frustration and fear related to Covid-19 duty in hospitals.

“HCWS are experiencing elevated psychological distress, burnout, and increased risk of mental illness. In April, when cases shot up, there were shortages of beds and oxygen. So, these young resident doctors had to prioritise the treatment of patients. In this, many have lost their critical patients. Now, they feel responsible for their death,” said Dr Nirmala Rao, director of the centre.

“They are under too much distress which is also affecting their personal relationships,” she added. Considering the good response at the helpline number, now it is being made available to the public. It will be functional between 9am and 6pm daily.

In many cases, HCWS who were asymptomatic carriers ended up infecting their family members which further added to their mental health woes. “My husband and both of my in-laws contracted Covid-19 from me. My father-in-law who was 68-year-old succumbed to the infection. I still feel guilty for it,” said Sunita Rao, 34, a nurse with the government-run JJ hospital.