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Symptoms of depression and anxiety, and unmet healthcare needs in adults during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging

Authors :
Jayati Khattar
Lauren E. Griffith
Aaron Jones
Vanessa De Rubeis
Margaret de Groh
Ying Jiang
Nicole E. Basta
Susan Kirkland
Christina Wolfson
Parminder Raina
Laura N. Anderson
the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) Team
Source :
BMC Public Health, Vol 22, Iss 1, Pp 1-12 (2022)
Publication Year :
2022
Publisher :
BMC, 2022.

Abstract

Abstract Background The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted access to healthcare services in Canada. Research prior to the pandemic has found that depression and anxiety symptoms were associated with increased unmet healthcare needs. The primary objective of this study was to examine if mental health was associated with perceived access to healthcare during the pandemic Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted using data from 23,972 participants (aged 50-96) in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging COVID-19 Exit Survey (Sept-Dec 2020). We used logistic regression to estimate how the presence of depression and anxiety symptoms, defined using scores of ≥10 on the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale and ≥10 on the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale, were associated with the odds of reporting: 1) challenges accessing healthcare, 2) not going to a hospital or seeing a doctor when needed, 3) experiencing barriers to COVID-19 testing. Models were adjusted for sex, age, region, urban/rural residence, racial background, immigrant status, income, marital status, work status, chronic conditions, and pre-pandemic unmet needs. Results The presence of depressive (aOR=1.96; 95% CI=1.82, 2.11) and anxiety symptoms (aOR=2.33; 95% CI=2.04, 2.66) compared to the absence of these symptoms were independently associated with higher odds of challenges accessing healthcare. A statistically significant interaction with sex suggested stronger associations in females with anxiety. Symptoms of depression (aOR=2.88; 95% CI=2.58, 3.21) and anxiety (aOR=3.05; 95% CI=2.58, 3.60) were also associated with increased odds of not going to a hospital or seeing a doctor when needed. Lastly, depressive (aOR=1.99; 95% CI=1.71, 2.31) and anxiety symptoms (aOR=2.01; 95% CI=1.58, 2.56) were associated with higher odds of reporting barriers to COVID-19 testing. There was no significantly significant interaction with sex for the latter two outcomes. Conclusion The presence of depression and anxiety symptoms were strongly associated with perceived unmet healthcare needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Interventions to improve healthcare access for adults with depression and anxiety during the pandemic may be necessary.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
14712458
Volume :
22
Issue :
1
Database :
Directory of Open Access Journals
Journal :
BMC Public Health
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
edsdoj.f2d94b4a621a4221ad8fedfebd8d9949
Document Type :
article
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-14633-4