Background: Exposure to patients with COVID-19 can have a significant impact on mental health of hospital medical staff. The
aim of this study was to examine the influence of proximity to patients with COVID-19 considering occupational position and gender
on the mental health of hospital staff.
Subjects and methods: N=78 participants were included in the study, with n=40 of them with direct contact to patients with
COVID-19 (51%); eight had contact with patients suspected of having COVID-19 (10%), and n=30 with no direct contact to people
with COVID-19 (39%).
Results: Multinomial regression analyses showed that proximity had a negative (inverse) influence on avoidance behaviour as
part of PTSD, physical symptoms, somatization, compulsiveness and anger expression-in as tendency to suppress anger. In addition,
there was a significant impact of the female gender on increased physical symptoms, while age, work experience and occupation had
no further influence.
Conclusions: These results that hospital medical staff is less psychologically stressed when closer to COVID-19 patients are
inconsistent with previous studies. Self-efficacy and locus of control in these situations are relevant for processing the trauma. In
summary, perception of personal risk is essential. Proximity is believed to be a proxy variable for personal risk perception. As a
synopsis of these results, regular briefings of the hospital staff are recommended to prevent psychological impairment. They should
contain specific information about conditions in the affected wards and the risk of infection, which could help reduce risk perception
of medical personnel