{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,28]],"date-time":"2026-02-28T08:44:35Z","timestamp":1772268275516,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":36,"publisher":"PeerJ","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,9,2]],"date-time":"2021-09-02T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1630540800000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The burden of the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted widely on the healthcare providers physically and mentally. Many healthcare providers are exposed to psychological stressors due to their high risk of contracting the virus.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Aims<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This study aimed to measure the level of anxiety among healthcare providers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia. In addition, this study aimed to measure the level of anxiety based on demographic characteristics.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Method<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A cross-sectional survey was employed to recruit a convenience sample of healthcare providers. A pencil and paper self-administered questionnaires were used to collect data from demographic and generalized anxiety disorder GAD-7 data. However, this study received written informed consent from participants of the study. In addition, the study was approved by the Institutional Review Board at Dr. Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Group (IRB Log No. RC20.06.88-03).<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A total of 650 participants were recruited, results of GAD-7 showed that 43.5%, 28.9% and 27.5% of healthcare providers in Saudi Arabia experienced mild, moderate and severe anxiety, respectively, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results indicated that age, health specialty, nationality, and sleeping disorders before COVID-19 were associated with anxiety levels.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The generalized anxiety among healthcare providers in Saudi Arabia was mild. Older healthcare providers were found to have a higher level of anxiety compared to other participating healthcare providers. Several factors may contribute to a higher level of anxiety including age, socioeconomic status, marital status, having chronic conditions, and sleeping disorder before the COVID-19 pandemic. To further understand the level of anxiety among healthcare providers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia, longitudinal and mixed-method research is needed.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.7717\/peerj.12119","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,9,2]],"date-time":"2021-09-02T04:18:47Z","timestamp":1630556327000},"page":"e12119","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":4,"title":["Level of anxiety among healthcare providers during COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia: cross-sectional study"],"prefix":"10.7717","volume":"9","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9471-2767","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Abbas","family":"Al Mutair","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Nursing, Princess Norah University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia"},{"name":"School of Nursing, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, Australia"},{"name":"Research Center, Almoosa Specialist Hospital, Al-ahsa, Saudi Arabia, Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4181-6279","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Alya","family":"Al Mutairi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science, Taibah University, Medina, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5814-9690","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Yasmine","family":"Alabbasi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Maternity and Child Health Nursing Department, College of Nursing, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Abbas","family":"Shamsan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Center, Dr. Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Group, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Sana","family":"Al-Mahmoud","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Imam Abdurrahman Bin Faisal University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4552-4513","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Saad","family":"Alhumaid","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Administration of Pharmaceutical Care, Al-Ahsa Health Cluster, Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8545-7055","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Muhammad zeshan","family":"Arshad","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Mansour","family":"Awad","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Commitment Administration, General Directorate of Health Affairs, Medina, Medina, Ministry of Health, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6774-9847","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Ali","family":"Rabaan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Molecular Diagnostic Laboratory, Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia"},{"name":"Department of Public Health and Nutrition, the University of Haripur, Haripur, Pakistan"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"4443","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,9,2]]},"reference":[{"issue":"3","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"376","DOI":"10.1002\/nop2.149","article-title":"Psychometric testing of the mental health inventory in an Arabian context: Cross-cultural validation study","volume":"5","author":"Al Mutair","year":"2018","journal-title":"Nursing open"},{"key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e11469","DOI":"10.7717\/peerj.11469","article-title":"The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the level of depression among health care workers: cross-sectional study","volume":"9","author":"Al Mutair","year":"2021","journal-title":"PeerJ"},{"issue":"5","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1890","DOI":"10.3390\/app10051890","article-title":"Examining and adapting the psychometric properties of the Maslach burnout inventory-health services survey (MBI-HSS) among healthcare professionals","volume":"10","author":"Al Mutair","year":"2020a","journal-title":"Applied Sciences"},{"issue":"3","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"80","DOI":"10.4103\/sccj.sccj_2_18","article-title":"Cross-sectional study of the overall emotional functioning of health-care providers in Saudi","volume":"1","author":"Al Mutair","year":"2017","journal-title":"Saudi Critical Care Journal"},{"key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1065","DOI":"10.2147\/RMHP.S279716","article-title":"Emotional wellbeing in saudi arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic: a national survey","volume":"14","author":"Al Mutair","year":"2021","journal-title":"Risk Management and Healthcare Policy"},{"issue":"1","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1186\/s40001-020-00462-x","article-title":"Clinical, epidemiological, and laboratory characteristics of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 patients in Saudi Arabia: an observational cohort study","volume":"25","author":"Al Mutair","year":"2020b","journal-title":"European Journal of Medical Research"},{"issue":"1","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"0300060519858030","DOI":"10.1177\/0300060519858030","article-title":"Narrative review of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection: updates and implications for practice","volume":"48","author":"Al Mutair","year":"2020","journal-title":"Journal of International Medical Research"},{"issue":"1","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"30","DOI":"10.2991\/dsahmj.k.190530.001","article-title":"Intensive care unit patients\u2019 perception of sleep quality and factors of sleep disruption: cross-sectional study","volume":"1","author":"Al Mutair","year":"2019","journal-title":"Dr. Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Journal"},{"issue":"4","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"203","DOI":"10.1097\/DCC.0000000000000422","article-title":"Sleep deprivation etiologies among patients in the intensive care unit: literature review","volume":"39","author":"Al Mutair","year":"2020c","journal-title":"Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing"},{"issue":"1","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-10","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"157","DOI":"10.3390\/app10010157","article-title":"Predicting burnout factors among healthcare providers at private hospitals in Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates: A cross-sectional study","volume":"10","author":"Al-Omari","year":"2020a","journal-title":"Applied Sciences"},{"issue":"11","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1639","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jiph.2020.09.003","article-title":"Clinical characteristics of non-intensive care unit COVID-19 patients in Saudi Arabia: a descriptive cross-sectional study","volume":"13","author":"Al-Omari","year":"2020b","journal-title":"Journal of Infection and Public Health"},{"issue":"10","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1432","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jiph.2020.08.013","article-title":"Mental health among healthcare providers during coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Saudi Arabia","volume":"13","author":"AlAteeq","year":"2020","journal-title":"Journal of Infection and Public Health"},{"issue":"11","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-13","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1645","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jiph.2020.09.001","article-title":"Prevalence and predictors of anxiety among healthcare workers in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic","volume":"13","author":"Alenazi","year":"2020","journal-title":"Journal of Infection and Public Health"},{"key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-14","article-title":"Anxiety","author":"American Psychological Association","year":"2021"},{"issue":"3","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"173","DOI":"10.1159\/000365211","article-title":"Anxiety and depression are more prevalent in patients with Graves\u2019 disease than in patients with nodular goitre","volume":"3","author":"Bov\u00e9","year":"2014","journal-title":"European Thyroid Journal"},{"issue":"2","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-16","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"341","DOI":"10.1530\/EJE-13-0708","article-title":"Hyperthyroidism and psychiatric morbidity: evidence from a Danish nationwide register study","volume":"170","author":"Brandt","year":"2014","journal-title":"European Journal of Endocrinology"},{"issue":"2","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-17","first-page":"209","article-title":"Prevalence of anxiety, depression, burnout syndrome, and mental health disorders among healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic: a rapid umbrella review of systematic reviews","volume":"6","author":"Chirico","year":"2021","journal-title":"Journal of Health and Social Sciences"},{"issue":"1","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-18","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"5","DOI":"10.1177\/2165079920950161","article-title":"The crucial role of occupational health surveillance for health-care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic","volume":"69","author":"Chirico","year":"2020","journal-title":"Workplace Health & Safety"},{"issue":"2","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-19","first-page":"165","article-title":"Tribute to healthcare operators threatened by COVID-19 pandemic","volume":"5","author":"Chirico","year":"2020","journal-title":"Journal of Health and Social Sciences"},{"issue":"1","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1186\/s12889-020-10070-3","article-title":"A rapid review of the impact of COVID-19 on the mental health of healthcare workers: implications for supporting psychological well-being","volume":"21","author":"De Kock","year":"2021","journal-title":"BMC Public Health"},{"issue":"4","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"416","DOI":"10.1016\/j.colegn.2019.11.001","article-title":"Similarities and differences in well-being between Australian, Saudi Arabian and South African pre-registration nursing students","volume":"27","author":"Fernandez","year":"2020","journal-title":"Collegian"},{"issue":"3","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-22","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e203976","DOI":"10.1001\/jamanetworkopen.2020.3976","article-title":"Factors associated with mental health outcomes among health care workers exposed to coronavirus disease 2019","volume":"3","author":"Lai","year":"2020","journal-title":"JAMA network open"},{"issue":"5","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-23","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"913","DOI":"10.3201\/eid2105.141988","article-title":"Ebola and psychological stress of health care professionals","volume":"21","author":"Lehmann","year":"2015","journal-title":"Emerging Infectious Diseases"},{"issue":"1","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-24","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"12","DOI":"10.1136\/emj.2006.035089","article-title":"The psychological effect of severe acute respiratory syndrome on emergency department staff","volume":"24","author":"Lin","year":"2007","journal-title":"Emergency Medicine Journal"},{"issue":"8","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-25","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"4361","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph18084361","article-title":"SARS\/MERS\/SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks and Burnout Syndrome among healthcare workers\u2014an umbrella systematic review","volume":"18","author":"Magnavita","year":"2021","journal-title":"International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health"},{"issue":"10","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-26","first-page":"1245","article-title":"The immediate psychological and occupational impact of the 2003 SARS outbreak in a teaching hospital","volume":"168","author":"Maunder","year":"2003","journal-title":"CMAJ"},{"key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-27","article-title":"The mental health of healthcare workers in COVID-19","author":"Mental Health America","year":"2020"},{"key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-28","article-title":"MOH news","author":"Ministery of Health","year":"2020"},{"issue":"20","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-29","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"901","DOI":"10.1016\/j.bbi.2020.05.026","article-title":"Prevalence of depression, anxiety, and insomnia among healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis","volume":"88","author":"Pappa","year":"2020","journal-title":"Brain, Behavior, and Immunity"},{"issue":"1","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-30","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"140","DOI":"10.1007\/s10862-016-9571-9","article-title":"Psychometric properties of the generalized anxiety disorder scale-7 (GAD-7) in outpatients with anxiety and mood disorders","volume":"39","author":"Rutter","year":"2017","journal-title":"Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment"},{"issue":"1","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-31","first-page":"1","article-title":"Prevalence of stress, anxiety, depression among the general population during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis","volume":"16","author":"Salari","year":"2020","journal-title":"Globalization and Health"},{"issue":"10","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-32","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1092","DOI":"10.1001\/archinte.166.10.1092","article-title":"A brief measure for assessing generalized anxiety disorder: the GAD-7","volume":"166","author":"Spitzer","year":"2006","journal-title":"Archives of Internal Medicine"},{"issue":"5","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-33","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1729","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph17051729","article-title":"Immediate psychological responses and associated factors during the initial stage of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic among the general population in China","volume":"17","author":"Wang","year":"2020","journal-title":"International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health"},{"issue":"6","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-34","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e12722","DOI":"10.1111\/jsr.12722","article-title":"Sleep disorders, depression and anxiety are associated with adverse safety outcomes in healthcare workers: a prospective cohort study","volume":"27","author":"Weaver","year":"2018","journal-title":"Journal of Sleep Research"},{"key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-35","article-title":"Mental health and COVID-19","author":"World Health Organization","year":"2021"},{"issue":"7","key":"10.7717\/peerj.12119\/ref-36","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2381","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph17072381","article-title":"Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health and quality of life among local residents in Liaoning Province, China: a cross-sectional study","volume":"17","author":"Zhang","year":"2020","journal-title":"International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health"}],"container-title":["PeerJ"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/peerj.com\/articles\/12119.pdf","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/peerj.com\/articles\/12119.xml","content-type":"application\/xml","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/peerj.com\/articles\/12119.html","content-type":"text\/html","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/peerj.com\/articles\/12119.pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2021,9,2]],"date-time":"2021-09-02T04:19:14Z","timestamp":1630556354000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/peerj.com\/articles\/12119"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2021,9,2]]},"references-count":36,"alternative-id":["10.7717\/peerj.12119"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.7717\/peerj.12119","archive":["CLOCKSS","LOCKSS","Portico"],"relation":{"has-review":[{"id-type":"doi","id":"10.7287\/peerj.12119v0.2\/reviews\/1","asserted-by":"object"},{"id-type":"doi","id":"10.7287\/peerj.12119v0.2\/reviews\/2","asserted-by":"object"},{"id-type":"doi","id":"10.7287\/peerj.12119v0.1\/reviews\/1","asserted-by":"object"},{"id-type":"doi","id":"10.7287\/peerj.12119v0.1\/reviews\/2","asserted-by":"object"}]},"ISSN":["2167-8359"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2167-8359","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2021,9,2]]},"article-number":"e12119"}}