Self-reported increase in alcohol and drugs intake as a coping strategy in hospital workers during COVID-19 outbreak: A cross-sectional study

Situations of psychological stress, such as the current COVID-19 pandemic, could lead to an increase in the consumption of alcohol and other drugs of abuse as an inadequate coping strategy in health workers. This study aimed to investigate the intake of alcohol and drugs of abuse in hospital workers during the first wave of COVID-19. A further focus was to define the worker profile most vulnerable to this behavior through a logistic regression analysis. A cross-sectional study in a tertiary hospital in Madrid, Spain, during the first wave of COVID-19 was designed. Information was collected from a sample (n = 657) of healthcare workers (n = 536) and non-healthcare workers (n = 121). An online survey (including questions about basic health habits, working environment conditions, sociodemographic data, and the 12-item version of the General Health Questionnaire as a measure of psychological wellbeing) was conducted. Increased consumption of alcohol and/or drugs of abuse during the analyzed period of the pandemic was reported by 17.1% of workers. The following variables were associated with a higher probability of increased consumption of alcohol and/or drugs of abuse: male gender (p =.044), living alone or without dependents (p =.005), staff physician or resident (p =.010), having worked on the COVID frontline (p =.058), poor nutritional habits (p =.004) and self-prescription of psychotropic drugs to manage anxiety and insomnia (p =.003). A significant percentage of hospital workers increased their consumption of alcohol and drugs of abuse during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. A professional risk profile can be defined for this practice.