Self-reported health-related quality of life of the general population in Alberta, Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic.

backgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has impacted various aspects of people's life and wellbeing around the world. This study aimed to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on health-related quality of life (HRQL), measured by the EQ-5D-5L, amongst the general population in the province of Alberta, Canada, and explore whether the impact varied across population subgroups based on age, gender, and dwelling.

methodsData came from two waves of a repeated cross-sectional population-based survey, the COVID-19 Experiences and Impact Survey, administered by the Health Quality Council of Alberta. The first data collection (survey 1: n = 8790) was during May/June 2020 and the second (survey 2: n = 9263) during Oct 2020. We examined the comparability of weighted survey data and their representativeness to Alberta's general population. We then explored between-survey differences in EQ-5D-5L index, EQ-VAS and dimension responses, and differences across subgroups within each survey. We compared HRQL of the pooled sample (survey 1&2) with the Alberta population norms data from the pre-pandemic period.

resultsMean EQ-5D-5L index and EQ-VAS scores were 0.81 (0.15) and 72.54 (18.57), and 0.82 (0.14) and 71.98 (18.96) in surveys 1 and 2, respectively. The anxiety/depression dimension had the most reported problems (survey 1: 69.5%, survey 2: 70.2%). Respondents aged 16-24 or 75 and older, who identified themselves as a woman, or residing in urban areas had significantly lower EQ-5D-5L index scores compared to their counterparts in both surveys. Between-survey differences were not substantially different. Comparing the pooled sample with the pre-pandemic Alberta population norms, EQ-5D-5L index scores (0.82 vs. 0.84) and EQ-VAS scores (72.26 vs. 77.40) were significantly lower, and respondents aged 16-44, women, or urban residents were more impacted. More problems were reported in the anxiety/depression (69.9% vs. 37.2%) and usual activities dimensions (40.5% vs. 26.0%) during the pandemic period, especially for respondents aged 16-44, women, and those residing in urban areas.

conclusionsLower HRQL was reported during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to pre-pandemic HRQL in this population, with anxiety/depression and usual activities affected the most. People who were younger, women, and residing in urban areas were most impacted. The government responses to COVID-19 policies during population outbreaks should consider the needs of Albertans in these particular groups.