A study of emotional states in candidates undergoing the diagnostic process for COVID-19

Waiting for results is often associated with a state of anxiety and restlessness. The current study is intended to study the emotional state of people waiting for their results after undergoing COVID-19 testing.

A descriptive study was done among 140 participants enrolled by simple random technique over a period of 1 month in May 2020. The participants who gave sample for COVID-19 were assessed for their emotional state at two stages - after giving sample and during the waiting period before telling results to them. A self-designed questionnaire focusing on the demographics and emotional state was submitted by the participants distributed to them as Google Forms. Wilcoxon signed-rank test and McNemar test were used to compare the statistical change in emotions over a period of time.

Around 63.6% and 68.8% of the participants had neutral emotional state after giving sample and before announcement of results, respectively. The mean score of agreement with decision to test was 9 ± 1.6 and discomfort related to testing was 4.6 ± 2.6 on Likert scale of 1-10. A statistically significant difference (P = 0.01) was observed in mean response for "something can be done to help" after giving sample (1.6 ± 0.4) and before announcement of results (1.8 ± 0.3).

Patients undergoing testing for COVID-19 undergo psychological turmoil and use various coping methods. Patients endorsed various suggestions including quicker generation of results, environmental changes and counselling services to help them cope better. Incorporating these suggestions may improve the diagnostic process in patients with COVID-19.