Impacts on psychological status and quality of life of people positive with COVID-19 in Bangladesh

Background: The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus quickly surged the whole world and affected people's physical, mental, and social health, thereby upsetting their quality of life (QOL). Purpose: The study aimed to investigate the psychological status and QOL of COVID-19-positive patients after recovery in Bangladesh. Methods: A multi-centered cross-sectional survey was conducted using a convenient sampling technique. A total of 305 COVID-19 cases, diagnosed by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests, were selected for interviewing through a phone call. Firstly, the participants were asked about socio-demographic information, and then the survey used self-report questionnaires of the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), European Quality of Life 5 Dimensions 3 Level Version (EQ-5D-3L), and EuroQoL-visual analogue scales (EQ-VAS) questionnaires. Results: The participant's age Mean ± SD was 34.84 ± 12.98. A maximum of 65.7% of participants were male, and 49.7% were from semi-urban areas. Around 50.1% of respondents had COVID-19-related symptoms, and a maximum of 19.3% were suffering from fatigue. The majority of the participants had hypertension (14.4%) and were newly diagnosed with respiratory cases (10.8%). Researchers found that 71.9% had taken management for health problems. The IES-R scale reported that around 29.8% had a mild psychological impact due to the COVID-19 outbreak. It displayed a significant association (p-value<0.05) among different variables of EQ-5D-3L with the age of the participants. The results focused on the significant association (p-value<0.05) between psychological variables and isolation duration in people positive for COVID-19. Conclusion: The study revealed that the psychological status and QOL of the people positive for COVID-19 declined. Appropriate, adequate, and timely information is needed to build awareness among the masses regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.