AUTHOR=Gamonal Bryan , Quispe-Lizano Rogelio , Javier-Murillo Nair , Lapeyre-Rivera André , Perea-Flórez Francisco , Velásquez-Rimachi Víctor , Alva-Diaz Carlos , Velazco-Gonzales Gilberth , Ahmed Oli , Chung Seockhoon 

TITLE=Comparison of the Stress and Anxiety to Viral Epidemic-9 and SAVE-6 scales among healthcare workers in Peru

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychiatry

VOLUME=15

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1352896

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1352896

ISSN=1664-0640

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Introduction</title><p>Peru is a country that has a high incidence of viral outbreaks and epidemics, which is why it is necessary to validate a scale that measures anxiety and stress in professionals who are on the front lines of these events. Therefore, our objective was to validate the Peruvian-Spanish version of the Stress and Anxiety to Viral Epidemics-9 items (SAVE-9) scale and to concurrently compare its validity and internal consistency with the SAVE-6 scale among healthcare workers (HCWs).</p></sec><sec><title>Materials and methods</title><p>We conducted a cross-sectional study based on data collected from a self-reported survey in paper-and-pencil format between April and July 2023. A total of 203 HCWs participated in the research. We developed a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and item response theory (IRT). We calculated Cronbach’s <italic>α</italic> coefficient and McDonald’s <italic>ω</italic> to assess the internal consistency of the scales.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>The results show that SAVE-9 (a two-factor model) and SAVE-6 (a one-factor model) provided an excellent fit in the confirmatory factor analysis. Both scales demonstrated strong internal consistency (Cronbach’s <italic>α</italic> 0.85 and 0.86, respectively). Significant correlations were found between the SAVE-9 and SAVE-6 scales and Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 items scale (<italic>r</italic> = 0.44 and <italic>r</italic> = 0.38, respectively, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001) as well as the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 items (<italic>r</italic> = 0.39 and <italic>r</italic> = 0.35, respectively, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001). The optimal cutoff points for SAVE-9 and SAVE-6 were identified for assessing anxiety, aligned with a GAD-7 score ≥5 points.</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusion</title><p>The Peruvian-Spanish SAVE-9 and SAVE-6 scales are reliable and valid rating scales to assess the anxiety response of HCWs in response to viral epidemics. Though COVID-19 is diminished, these scales will be useful for other viral epidemics in the future.</p></sec>