ABSTRACT
Objective: To survey and analyze the experience of stigma among patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Iran.
Methods: This qualitative study was conducted from September to December 2020 in the Fars, Khorasan Razavi, and Yazd provinces of Iran. Sampling was done via the snowball method. Based on data saturation criteria, 24 adults aged > 18 years who had been diagnosed with COVID-19 were recruited. Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with each patient. Data were analyzed following the conventional content analysis method.
Results: The results showed that during their illness with COVID-19, the participants experienced a difficult and anxious course, with rejection and alienation from their first-degree relatives taking them by surprise. The 3 main themes extracted from this study were (1) fear and rejection, (2) discrimination, and (3) loneliness. These experiences changed the attitudes of the participants toward life and themselves.
Conclusions: The results show the importance of being aware of social stigma among patients and that primary care physicians play an integral role in addressing this issue, especially during pandemics. Psychological counseling sessions for those afflicted is recommended, and education and training should be provided to the public regarding the proper treatment of patients with COVID-19. Quantitative studies in this field are highly recommended.
Free Access: Please Log In
This content is completely free—but you need to be logged in to read the full article. If you already have an account, please log in below. Otherwise, register for free to unlock instant access.
References (55)
- Munster VJ, Koopmans M, van Doremalen N, et al. A novel coronavirus emerging in China—key questions for impact assessment. N Engl J Med. 2020;382(8):692–694. PubMed CrossRef
- World Health Organization. Responding to community spread of COVID-19: interim guidance. March 7, 2020. WHO website. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/responding-to-community-spread-of-covid-19.
- Meo SA, Al-Khlaiwi T, Usmani AM, et al. Biological and epidemiological trends in the prevalence and mortality due to outbreaks of novel coronavirus COVID-19. J King Saud Univ Sci. 2020;32(4):2495–2499. PubMed CrossRef
- Kalantari H, Tabrizi AHH, Foroohi F. Determination of COVID-19 prevalence with regards to age range of patients referring to the hospitals located in western Tehran, Iran. Gene Rep. 2020;21:100910. PubMed CrossRef
- World Health Organization. Modes of transmission of virus causing COVID-19: implications for IPC precaution recommendations: scientific brief. March 29, 2020. WHO website. https://www.who.int/news-room/commentaries/detail/modes-of-transmission-of-virus-causing-covid-19-implications-for-ipc-precaution-recommendations
- Noghabi AD, Mohammadzadeh F, Yoshany N, et al. The prevalence of preventive behaviors and associated factors during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic among Iranian People: Application of a Health Belief Model. J Prev Med Hyg. 2021;62(1):E60–E66. PubMed
- Noghabi AD, Yoshany N, Mohammadzadeh F, et al. Predictors of Covid-19 preventive behaviors in Iranian population over 15 years old: an application of health belief model. J Mazandaran Univ Med Sci. 2020;30(191):13–21.
- Bagcchi S. Stigma during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lancet Infect Dis. 2020;20(7):782. PubMed CrossRef
- Goffman E. Stigma: Notes on the Management of Spoiled Identity. Simon and Schuster; 2009.
- Dowdy DW, Zwerling AA, Stennett A, et al. Measuring stigma to assess the social justice implications of health-related policy decisions: application to novel treatment regimens for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. MDM Policy Pract. 2020;5(1):2381468320915239. PubMed CrossRef
- Frost DM. Social stigma and its consequences for the socially stigmatized. Soc Personal Psychol Compass. 2011;5(11):824–839. CrossRef
- Kalateh Sadati A, Bagheri Lankarani K. Disparities and discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS by healthcare providers in Iran. Iran J Public Health. 2019;48(10):1935–1936. PubMed
- Major B, O’Brien LT. The social psychology of stigma. Annu Rev Psychol. 2005;56(1):393–421. PubMed CrossRef
- Ferree KE, Harris AS, Dulani B, et al. Stigma, trust, and procedural integrity: Covid-19 testing in Malawi. World Dev. 2021;141:105351. PubMed CrossRef
- Cox WT, Abramson LY, Devine PG, et al. Stereotypes, prejudice, and depression: the integrated perspective. Perspect Psychol Sci. 2012;7(5):427–449. PubMed CrossRef
- Ramaci T, Barattucci M, Ledda C, et al. Social stigma during COVID-19 and its impact on HCWs outcomes. Sustainability. 2020;12(9):3834. CrossRef
- Abdelhafiz AS, Alorabi M. Social stigma: the hidden threat of COVID-19. Front Public Health. 2020;8:429. PubMed CrossRef
- Misra S, Le PD, Goldmann E, et al. Psychological impact of anti-Asian stigma due to the COVID-19 pandemic: a call for research, practice, and policy responses. Psychol Trauma. 2020;12(5):461–464. PubMed CrossRef
- Thornicroft G, Sunkel C. Announcing the Lancet Commission on stigma and discrimination in mental health. Lancet. 2020;396(10262):1543–1544. PubMed CrossRef
- Sartorius N. Stigma and mental health. Lancet. 2007;370(9590):810–811. PubMed CrossRef
- Peprah P, Gyasi RM. Stigma and COVID‐19 crisis: a wake‐up call. Int J Health Plann Manage. 2021;36(1):215–218. PubMed
- Banks LM, Davey C, Shakespeare T, et al. Disability-inclusive responses to COVID-19: Lessons learnt from research on social protection in low- and middle-income countries. World Dev. 2021;137:105178. PubMed CrossRef
- Gupta J, Bavinck M, Ros-Tonen M, et al. COVID-19, poverty and inclusive development. World Dev. 2021;145:105527. CrossRef
- Song M. Psychological stress responses to COVID-19 and adaptive strategies in China. World Dev. 2020;136:105107. PubMed CrossRef
- Etesam F, Akhlaghi M, Vahabi Z, et al. Comparative study of occupational burnout and job stress of frontline and non-frontline healthcare workers in hospital wards during COVID-19 pandemic. Iran J Public Health. 2021;50(7):1428–1435. PubMed CrossRef
- Farooq MB, De Villiers C. Telephonic Qualitative Research Interviews: When to Consider Them and How to Do Them. Meditari Accountancy Research; 2017.
- Trier-Bieniek A. Framing the telephone interview as a participant-centred tool for qualitative research: a methodological discussion. Qual Res. 2012;12(6):630–644. CrossRef
- Erlingsson C, Brysiewicz P. A hands-on guide to doing content analysis. Afr J Emerg Med. 2017;7(3):93–99. PubMed CrossRef
- Lincoln YS, Guba EG. But is it rigorous? trustworthiness and authenticity in naturalistic evaluation. New Dir Program Eval. 1986;1986(30):73–84. CrossRef
- Harvey L. Beyond member-checking: a dialogic approach to the research interview. Int J Res Method Educ. 2015;38(1):23–38. CrossRef
- Chew CC, Lim XJ, Chang CT, et al. Experiences of social stigma among patients tested positive for COVID-19 and their family members: a qualitative study. BMC Public Health. 2021;21(1):1623. PubMed CrossRef
- Eisazadeh F, Aliakbari Dehkordi M, Aghajanbigloo S. Psychological consequences of patients with coronavirus (COVID-19): a qualitative study. Iranian J Health Psychol. 2020;2(2):9–20.
- Davtyan M, Brown B, Folayan MO. Addressing Ebola-related stigma: lessons learned from HIV/AIDS. Glob Health Action. 2014;7(1):26058. PubMed CrossRef
- Karamouzian M, Hategekimana C. Ebola treatment and prevention are not the only battles: understanding Ebola-related fear and stigma. Int J Health Policy Manag. 2014;4(1):55–56. PubMed CrossRef
- Farag E, Marufu O, Sikkema R, et al. The hidden epidemic: MERS-CoV-related stigma observations from the field, Qatar 2012-2015. Int J Infect Dis. 2016;45:332. CrossRef
- Ransing R, Ramalho R, de Filippis R, et al. Infectious disease outbreak related stigma and discrimination during the COVID-19 pandemic: drivers, facilitators, manifestations, and outcomes across the world. Brain Behav Immun. 2020;89:555–558. PubMed CrossRef
- Sun N, Wei L, Wang H, et al. Qualitative study of the psychological experience of COVID-19 patients during hospitalization. J Affect Disord. 2021;278:15–22. PubMed CrossRef
- Sood S. Psychological effects of the coronavirus disease-2019 pandemic. Res Humanities Med Educ. 2020;7(11):23–26.
- Ćosić K, Popović S, Šarlija M, et al. Artificial intelligence in prediction of mental health disorders induced by the COVID-19 pandemic among health care workers. Croat Med J. 2020;61(3):279–288. PubMed CrossRef
- Li D. Influence of the youth’s psychological capital on social anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak: the mediating role of coping style. Iran J Public Health. 2020;49(11):2060–2068. PubMed
- Ahmed A, Aqeel M, Aslam N. COVID-19 health crisis and prevalence of anxiety among individuals of various age groups: a qualitative study. J Ment Health Train Educ Pract. 2021;16(1):58–66.
- Sahu P. Closure of universities due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): impact on education and mental health of students and academic staff. Cureus. 2020;12(4):e7541. PubMed CrossRef
- Long N. From social distancing to social containment. Med Anthropol Theory. 2020;7(2):247–260. CrossRef
- Bhanot D, Singh T, Verma SK, et al. Stigma and discrimination during COVID-19 pandemic. Front Public Health. 2021;8:577018. PubMed
- Chen D, Song F, Tang L, et al. Quarantine experience of close contacts of COVID-19 patients in China: a qualitative descriptive study. Gen Hosp Psychiatry. 2020;66:81–88. PubMed CrossRef
- Ornell F, Schuch JB, Sordi AO, et al. “Pandemic fear” and COVID-19: mental health burden and strategies. Br J Psychiatry. 2020;42(3):232–235. PubMed CrossRef
- Gallop J. Lacan’s” mirror stage”: where to begin. SubStance. 1982;11(4):118–128. CrossRef
- Muller J. Lacan’s mirror stage. Psychoanal Inq. 1985;5(2):233–252.
- Eatough V, Smith JA. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. In Willig C, Rogers WS, eds. The Sage Handbook of Qualitative Research in Psychology. 2008;179–194.
- Smith JA, Shinebourne P. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. American Psychological Association; 2012.
- Grover S, Dua D, Sahoo S, et al. Why all COVID-19 hospitals should have mental health professionals: the importance of mental health in a worldwide crisis! Asian J Psychiatr. 2020;51:102147. PubMed CrossRef
- Bruns DP, Kraguljac NV, Bruns TR. COVID-19: facts, cultural considerations, and risk of stigmatization. J Transcult Nurs. 2020;31(4):326–332. PubMed CrossRef
- Ren S-Y, Gao R-D, Chen Y-L. Fear can be more harmful than the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in controlling the coronavirus disease 2019 epidemic. World J Clin Cases. 2020;8(4):652–657. PubMed CrossRef
- Imran N, Afzal H, Aamer I, et al. Scarlett letter: a study based on experience of stigma by COVID-19 patients in quarantine. Pak J Med Sci. 2020;36(7):1471–1477. PubMed CrossRef
- Aungsuroch Y, Juanamasta IG, Gunawan J. Experiences of patients with coronavirus in the COVID-19 pandemic era in Indonesia. Asian J Pub Opin Res. 2020;8(3):377–392.
Please sign in or purchase this PDF for $40.