The moderating role of psychological resilience in the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and psychological distress, in a cohort of rural and regional healthcare workers. During major lockdowns in Victoria, Australia 2020–2021

AbstractThe emergence of the COVID‐19 pandemic resulted in substantial pressures for healthcare workers across the world. The association between fear of COVID‐19 and psychological distress, and the role of psychological resilience have gained research interest. The current study aimed to investigate the cross‐sectional association between fear of COVID‐19 and psychological distress, in Australian rural/regional healthcare workers and determine whether resilience modifies this association. Most participants were nurses (38.0%), mean age was 44.9 years, and 80.5% were female (N = 1313). An adjusted logistic regression analysis showed that the highest tertile of the Fear of COVID‐19 scale was associated with higher odds of moderate to severe symptoms of anxiety (OR = 3.72, 95% CI = 2.27, 6.11; p < 0.001) and depression (OR = 3.48, 95% CI = 2.30, 5.28; p < 0.001). Healthcare workers with high level of fear of COVID‐19 and low level of resilience were much more likely to report moderate to severe symptoms of anxiety (OR = 12.27, 95% CI = 6.65–22.65, p < 0.001) and depression (OR = 12.21, 95% CI = 6.93–21.50, p < 0.001) when compared to healthcare workers with low level of fear of COVID‐19 and high level of resilience. A cross‐sectional design was used and therefore cause and effect between fear of COVID‐19 and psychological distress cannot be inferred. Longitudinal research is needed to investigate the possible causal relationship. These findings highlight the potential mental health effects of fear of COVID‐19 on HCWs and demonstrate the importance of resilience as a possible moderator of these effects.