Participation in physical activity and examination of quality of life of healthcare professionals during the pandemic period

From world history to the present day, most epidemic diseases affecting comprehensive geographies are experienced. Some of this epidemic has caused a pandemic and has serious changes and effects on society. The most important of these effects are the measures taken to maintain social distance and the possibility of this situation to cause decreases in the level of physical activity and the resulting health problems. Health workers are the most affected group by the conditions caused by the pandemic. However, the impact of the pandemic process on the general health status and physical activity levels of health workers before and during the pandemic is not fully known. The aim of this study is to examine the changes in the physical activity levels of health workers before and during the pandemic. The population of this study consists of 300 participants consisting of doctors, nurses and auxiliary health personnel and all health personnel working at Afyonkarahisar University of Health Sciences. A total of 300 health workers, 172 women and 128 men, participated in the survey. In the study, the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale (Short Form) and the International Physical Activity Survey were used to determine the physical activity levels of health workers before and during the pandemic. In the analysis of the data, SPSS 22.0 (Statistical package for the Social Sciences) program was used in computer environment. Paired t test was applied to determine the difference between the quality of life and physical activity participation values of the participants before and during the pandemic. While the ANOVA test was applied to determine the difference according to the intra-group variables, the percentage and frequency values of the variables were shown separately. At the end of the study, while no significant difference was found in moderate-intensity activity before and during the pandemic period (328.22±1018.7 vs 304.00±732.31 p>0.599), a significant decrease in walking score (1814.40±2467.71 vs 1277.43±1567.32, p<0.001) was observed. An increase was observed in sitting scores (2272.34±1288.64 vs 2572±1625.64, p<0.001), and in vigorous activity scores (615.06± 1506.98 vs 754.80±1408.46 p<0.042). There was no significant difference in the mean of total net activity scores (5030.03±3796.78 versus 4908.90±2817.59 p>0.082) before and during the pandemic period. In addition, a significant decrease was recorded in general health averages (59.12±17.50 vs 47.83±17.70 p<0.01), physical health averages (62.05±14.25 vs 52.54±15.43, p<0.04), psychological health averages (61.83±15.96 vs 47.95±±17.21, p<0.02), social relations averages (62.94.17.96 vs 51.61±19.43, p±0.02) and environmental averages (61.26<14.61 vs 56.55±16.27, p<0.05).As a result, it has been observed that the pandemic has seriously affected the general health status of health workers and caused a decrease in physical activity levels. In the post-pandemic period, it is recommended to organize physical activities with recreational content in order to improve the psycho-physical health status of health workers.