Mental health of business employees at a Thai company during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic
Keywords:
COVID-19, employees, mental health, pandemicAbstract
Background: Mental health is a state of well-being in which individuals can manage their emotional, psychological, and social well-being in daily life. Factors related to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic such as social isolation, social distancing, quarantine, long-term work from home, or unemployment could potentially result in poor mental health.
Objectives: To investigate business employees’ mental health including depression, anxiety, and stress and related factors during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods: The current study was a cross-sectional descriptive study. Online questionnaires were sent to the 127 employees in a business company in Thailand. Data were collected by using the personal data questionnaires, the happiness at work scale, and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21). The related factors to employees’ mental health were analyzed by Chi-square and Fisher’s exact test. The logistic regression was performed on the predictors of employees’ mental health.
Results: Of the 127 employees, 124 completed the questionnaires. One-third of the employees had anxiety (30.6%), depression (29.0%), and stress (25.8%). Factors significantly associated with mental health were emotional factors, working variables, happiness at work, responsibility for family expenses, getting help from mental health professionals, and using sleeping pills during the past one year (P < 0.05). The predictors of having mental health problems were emotional factors (despair, dismal feelings, angry feeling) the working factors, (low satisfaction with the previous year’s performance appraisal) and happiness at work. Additionally, using sleeping pills during the past one year can predict anxiety and depression.
Conclusion: During the COVID-19 pandemic, some of the business employees at a selected company had mental health issues. Factors related to mental health problems are either involving to the work or the personal issues.
