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Cheriyalinkal Parambil B, Goswami S, Roy Moulik N, Sonkusare L, Dhamne C, Narula G, Vora T, Prasad M, Chichra A, Jatia S, Sarda H, Paradkar A, Deodhar J, Chinnaswamy G, Banavali S. Psychological distress in primary caregivers of children with cancer during COVID-19 pandemic-A single tertiary care center experience. Psychooncology 2021; 31:253-259. [PMID: 34435720 PMCID: PMC8646668 DOI: 10.1002/pon.5793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2021] [Revised: 08/11/2021] [Accepted: 08/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
Objective Families of children with cancer undergoing treatment during COVID‐19 pandemic represent a vulnerable population for psychological distress and early identification and remedial measures are imperative for wellbeing of both the children and the caregivers. This article reports the results of assessment of psychological distress in primary caregivers of children with cancer undergoing treatment at a tertiary care center. Methods Primary caregivers of children with cancer (≤15 years) taking treatment at our institute during the period of July 2020 to August 2020 were prospectively evaluated for psychological distress using Patient Health Questionnaire‐9 (PHQ‐9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder‐7 (GAD‐7) tools over a telephonic call. There were 2 cohorts, A and B (50 participants each) depending on whether child was diagnosed with COVID‐19 or not respectively during the study period. Results The assessment tool, PHQ‐9 showed a score of ≥10 in 13% (n = 13) participants (95%CI:7.1%–21.2%) in the entire cohort and in 16% (n = 8, 95%CI:5.8%–26.2%) and 10% (n = 5, 95%CI:1.7%–18.3%) participants in cohort A and cohort B respectively. GAD‐7 showed a score of ≥8 in 18% (n = 18) participants (95%CI:11.0%–27.0%) in the entire cohort and in 20% (n = 10, 95%CI:8.9%–31.1%) and 16% (n = 8, 95%CI:5.8%–26.2%) participants in cohort A and cohort B respectively. All participants were assessed, and supportive psychotherapeutic interventions administered over telephonic call. Conclusions Primary caregivers should be assessed and followed up for psychological distress irrespective of other co‐existing factors. Robust support systems built over time could help withstand the exceptional strain of a major surge during a pandemic.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Savita Goswami
- Department of Psycho-Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Nirmalya Roy Moulik
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Lekhika Sonkusare
- Department of Psycho-Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Chetan Dhamne
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Gaurav Narula
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Tushar Vora
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Maya Prasad
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Akanksha Chichra
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Shalini Jatia
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Harshita Sarda
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Amey Paradkar
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Jayita Deodhar
- Department of Psycho-Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Girish Chinnaswamy
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
| | - Shripad Banavali
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Mumbai, India
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