Abstract
Background: Healthcare workers are tirelessly dedicated and committed to safeguarding the well-being of the population in the rapidly growing world and often experience multifaceted challenges due to various factors related to their work. However, these high-pressure environments are overlooked, thus taking a toll on their mental health, leading to various mental health issues such as burnout, anxiety, depression, and stress. This research was conducted with the aim of exploring the factors associated with anxiety, depression, and stress among the healthcare workers in selected health facilities in Lesotho, as failure to address these issues can result in a reduced health workforce and affect the quality of care provided to patients.
Objectives: The objectives of the study were to determine the prevalence of anxiety, depression, and stress among healthcare workers in selected health facilities in Lesotho; to identify factors associated with these mental health issues in selected health facilities in Lesotho; and to determine mental health service utilisation among healthcare workers in selected health facilities in Lesotho.
Methods: The study utilised a quantitative cross-sectional study design to collect data from 278 healthcare workers in selected health facilities in Berea, Maseru and Leribe. A multistage simple random sampling was done to recruit participants. Online structured self-administered questionnaires were used to collect data, and SPSS version 30 statistical software was used to analyse data.
Results: The results revealed self-reported prevalence of anxiety, depression and stress to be 20%, 16%, and 9%, respectively. The factors associated with anxiety were number of years worked at current organization (B=0.23, 95% CI: 0.09-0.64, p=0.00), ever feeling a need to seek mental health service (MHS) (B=0.29, 95% CI: 0.13-0.64, p=0.00), chronic diseases (B=0.26, 95% CI: 0.11-0.65, p=0.00), stigma and discrimination (B=0.43, 95% CI: 0.20-0.97, p=0.04), and unavailability of MHS for anxiety (B=0.42, 95% CI: 0.19-0.91, p=0.03) and depression (B=0.45, 95% CI: 0.20-1.01, p=0.05). Alcohol consumption was associated with depression (B=0.38, 95% CI: 0.18-0.81, p=0.01) and stress (B=0.37, 95% CI: 0.14-0.99, p=0.05), while ever using MHS was associated with anxiety (B=0.28, 95% CI: 0.11-0.68, p=0.01), depression (B=0.30, 95% CI: 0.11-0.78, p=0.01), and stress (B=0.26, 95% CI: 0.08-0.82, p=0.02). The study revealed that only 18% of the participants had used MHS at one point in their lives.
Conclusion: The revealed prevalence of anxiety, depression, and stress was 20%, 16%, and 9%, respectively. The majority of healthcare workers exhibited a mild degree of anxiety and stress while showing moderate depression. The factors associated with anxiety, depression, and stress were found to be alcohol use, chronic illnesses, and the number of years working in an organization. Again, the study revealed low (18%) utilization of MHS among healthcare workers. The study highlighted the unavailability of the MHS, financial cost, treatment ineffectiveness, and stigma as the factors hindering utilization of the MHS. This suggests a need for psychosocial support for healthcare workers at the workplace. There is a need to decentralize and incorporate MHS within occupational health to facilitate availability, accessibility, and reduce stigma.