J Korean Soc Biol Ther Psychiatry.  2023 Oct;29(3):116-122. 10.22802/jksbtp.2023.29.3.116.

The Association Between Overtime Hours and Perceived Stress, Depression, and Anxiety Among COVID-19 Community Health Workers

• Song MJ
• Kim JH
• Kim HS
• Kim SH
• Park JH

• KMID: 2547847
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.22802/jksbtp.2023.29.3.116

Abstract

Objectives
This study aimed to examine the association between overtime hours and perceived stress, depression, and anxiety among coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) community health workers.
Methods
Self-report data were collected from 1,181 community health workers in Busan between 15 June and 2 July 2021. The data collected were analyzed using analysis of variance and logistic regression to examine how average weekly overtime hours affect perceived stress, depression, and anxiety.
Results
The proportion of individuals who perceived a high degree of stress was higher in the groups with average weekly overtime of 5-10 hours (odds ratio [OR] 1.81, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.09-3.01) and 10 or more hours (OR 2.26, 95% CI 1.33-3.82) than in the group with average weekly overtime of less than 5 hours. Among the groups with average weekly overtime of 5-10 hours and 10 or more hours, the proportion of individuals at a high risk of depression was OR 1.74 (95% CI 1.31-2.31) and OR 3.39 (95% CI 2.53-4.54), respectively. In the same two groups, the proportion of individuals at a high risk of anxiety was OR 1.75 (95% CI 1.31-2.33) and OR 3.34 (95% CI 2.51-4.46), respectively.
Conclusions
This study shows that perceived stress, depression, and anxiety levels significantly increase as average weekly overtime hours increase among COVID-19 community health workers.

Keyword

COVID-19; Community health workers; Perceived stress; Depression; Anxiety