Risk factors associated with COVID-19 morbidity and mortality at a national tertiary referral treatment centre in Ghana: a retrospective analysis

Introduction: there is a substantial variation in COVID-19 case fatality rates across different locations, which may be due to differences in population age structure, patient factors, or health system factors. The study evaluated the clinical features and risk of COVID-19 morbidity and mortality among confirmed cases at COVID-19 referral treatment centre. Methods: the study was a retrospective analysis of routine data of cases admitted and treated between March 2020 to March 2021 at Greater Accra Regional Hospital (Ridge Hospital). The data were analysed using descriptive statistics, simple and multiple logistic regression. Results: the overall mortality rate among this cohort of patients was 34.4%. Compared to survivors, non-survivors were older patients, non-insured, had a higher frequency of hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, and were more prone to suffer from a severe form of COVID-19 infection. Compared to survivors, non-survivors showed elevated levels of white blood cell count, platelets, higher heartbeat per minute and lower levels of haemoglobin, creatinine, and oxygen saturation. The independent risk factors for COVID-19 mortality in the national treatment centre were shorter stay of hospitalizations, having a heart disease, difficulty in breathing, increased in concentration of platelets, and creatinine. A 1% increase in oxygen saturation decreased a patient's likelihood of dying from COVID-19 by 29.0%. Conclusion: this study showed COVID-19 mortality was associated with a shorter stay in hospital, having heart disease, dyspnoea, elevated levels of platelets and creatinine, and decreased oxygen saturation. There is a need for awareness creation about these risk factors to clinicians and public health officials.

Post-Traumatic Growth and Resilience among Hospitalized COVID-19 Survivors: A Gendered Analysis.

The literature on behavioral outcomes associated with the COVID-19 pandemic is inundated with mental health burdens such as depression and stress disorders. The current study investigated gender invariance on resilience and post-traumatic growth (PTG) as positive psychological changes associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 381 survivors of the COVID-19 infection completed measurements of resilience, PTG, violence and stigma experience, and mental health problems like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation, multivariate regression, and a latent profile analysis. The results revealed that more than half of the participants had high scores on resilience (53.6%) and PTG (60.9%). The positive psychological changes, although independent of each other, were moderated by gender, and influenced by the negative experiences of participants such as stigma, violence, and PTSD. Latent profile analyses revealed three classes of participants, two of which were characterized by high scores on mental health problems and PTG. The clusters were invariant across gender. Surviving COVID-19 contributed to resilience and PTG. These can be targeted for intervention programs to mitigate the mental health burden occasioned by the pandemic.