ArticleBMJ open2020
Prevalence of anxiety and depressive symptoms among emergency physicians in Libya after civil war: a cross-sectional study.
Article in BMJ open, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 20 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prevalence of depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress in war- and conflict-afflicted areas: A meta-analysis.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Pooled it
- Determinants of anxiety and depression and their association with coping strategies in health professionals in war and conflict-afflicted areas.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Post-traumatic stress disorder and depression as predictors of peace of mind among healthcare workers working with war victims.Global mental health (Cambridge, England) · 2026Article
- Prevalence and correlates of depression, anxiety, and burnout among physicians and postgraduate medical trainees: a scoping review of recent literature.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Psychological health and wellness and the impact of 6 weeks and 3 months supportive text messaging program (Wellness4MDs) among physicians and medical learners in Canada: a longitudinal study.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- The prevalence of burnout and coping strategies among Palestinian health professionals: a cross sectional study.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
- Effects of psychological capital and social support availability on anxiety and depression among Chinese emergency physicians: Testing moderated mediation model.Frontiers in psychology · 2022Article
- The Mental Well-Being of Frontline Physicians Working in Civil Wars Under Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic Conditions.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2020Article
- Burnout Syndrome Among Hospital Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Civil War: A Cross-Sectional Study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2020Article
- Emergency Departments: Preparing for a New War.Journal of emergencies, trauma, and shockArticle
- Emergency Physicians: Creating Ripples, Expanding Domains, and Negotiating VUCA Situations.Journal of emergencies, trauma, and shockArticle
- Depression, Anxiety and Stress Symptoms among Afghan Healthcare Workers: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study.Indian journal of occupational and environmental medicineArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
15 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesWe aimed to identify the prevalence of depression and anxiety among physicians working in the emergency departments of nine tertiary care centres in Libya.
designThis was a cross-sectional study.
settingNine main tertiary centres in Libya
participantsEmergency department doctors were surveyed between December 2018 and February 2019.
interventionThe standardised Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was selected as a measurement tool for analysing anxiety and depression symptoms; a HADS score of 8 indicated anxiety as well as depression symptoms. The primary outcomes were anxiety and depression, which were tabulated with independent sociodemographic variables. χ
resultsA total of 108 out of 150 (72%) emergency physicians from all levels participated in the study and took the survey. The emergency physicians had a mean±SD age of 31.2±4.5 years, and were predominantly males (74 out of 108, 68.5%). Overall, 49 (45.4%) physicians reached the cut-off score to define both depression and anxiety (ie, a score ≥8). In terms of violence, 71 (65.7%) reported incidents of verbal violence, while 26 (24.1%) reported physical violence or abuse by militias. In addition, 28 reported being threatened by militias.
conclusionThe high prevalence rate of anxiety and depression is of concern, and the high rate of physical and verbal abuse highlights the range of abuse endured by doctors in Libya. Therefore, screening for anxiety and depression at regular intervals is needed to avoid the deterioration of mental health, which can increase the risk of suicide and dropping out, and decrease the level of healthcare for patients.
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