Psychological Distress Among Outpatient Physicians in Private Practice Linked to COVID-19 and Related Mental Health During the Second Lockdown

Background: Outpatient physicians in private practice, as inpatient physicians, are on the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic. Mental-health consequences of the pandemic on hospital staff have been published, but the psychological distress among outpatient physicians in private practice due to COVID-19 during lockdown has never been assessed. We aim to assess, among outpatient physicians in private practice, the prevalence of psychological distress linked to COVID-19 during the 2nd lockdown in France, its associated factors, and related mental health. Methods: A French national online cross-sectional survey assessed declared psychological distress among outpatient physicians in private practice linked to COVID-19, sociodemographic and work conditions, mental health (Copenhagen Burn-out Inventory, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and the Insomnia severity Index), consequences on alcohol, tobacco, and illegal substance misuse, and sick leave during the 2nd COVID-19 lockdown.Findings: Among the 1,992 physicians who answered the survey, 1,529 (76.8%) declared psychological distress linked to COVID-19. They were more frequently general practitioners. Outpatient physicians who declared psychological distress linked to COVID-19 had higher rates of insomnia (OR=1.4; CI95 [1.1-1.7], p=0.003), burnout (OR=2.7; CI95 [2.1; 3.2], p<0.001), and anxiety and depressive symptoms (OR=2.4; CI95 [1.9-3.0], p<0.001 and OR=1.7; CI95 [1.3-2.3], p<0.001) as compared to physicians who did not.Interpretation: The feeling of being in psychological distress due to COVID-19 is highly frequent among outpatient physicians in private practice and is associated with mental health impairment. There is a need to assess specific interventions dedicated to outpatient physicians working in private practice.Funding Information: No funding.Declaration of Interests: No conflict of interest arises from this research.Ethics Approval Statement: Approval for this study was obtained from the local institutional review board at the University of Paris-Saclay, France. The questionnaires were collected anonymously. Respondents gave their informed consent to participate.