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VOLUME 13 , ISSUE S1 ( Supplementary Issue 1, 2022 ) > List of Articles

ORIGINAL RESEARCH

Quality of Life among Oral Healthcare Professionals during COVID-19 Pandemic Using WHOQOL-BREF: A Survey

Aditi Verma, Geetpriya Kaur, Guljot Singh

Keywords : COVID-19, Oral care, Oral healthcare professionals, Pandemic, Quality of life

Citation Information :

DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-10015-2133

License: CC BY-NC 4.0

Published Online: 01-10-2022

Copyright Statement:  Copyright © 2022; The Author(s).


Abstract

Aim: The study aimed to examine the quality of life (QOL) among oral healthcare professionals (OHCPs) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in India. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional web-based study was conducted on 138 OHCPs (general dentists/specialists) from public and private sectors in India in July 2021 through emails and WhatsApp using the 26-item World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF) tool to assess their QOL. Unpaired t-tests and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests were employed to check for the association between the demographic characteristics and the QOL with a p-value <0.05. Results: The overall mean QOL score of the study participants was 75.66 ± 12.4. The environmental domain reported the highest mean score of QOL (94.8), whereas the social relationship domain reported the lowest mean score of QOL (44.5). The type of work significantly affected the QOL scores in three out of four domains: physical (p = 0.04), psychological (p = 0.02), and social relationship domain (p = 0.003). About 68% of study participants felt their QOL was good or very good, while 7% considered it poor or very poor. Conclusion: The QOL of OHCPs has been significantly influenced during the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the four domains, the social relationship domain has been the most severely impacted, which could lead to higher psychological stress for OHCPs while providing dental care to patients. Clinical significance: Like frontline workers, dental professionals are also suffering from increased psychological stress while rendering oral care to patients. Hence, there is an utmost need for wellness programs to be organized to improve the QOL of OHCPs in the country.


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