death anxiety and its predictors among the companions of hospitalized patients with coronavirus disease 2019

Background and aims: death anxiety (da) is associated with stress and impaired immunity and thereby, puts individuals at risk for coronavirus disease 2019 (covid-19). the aim of this study was to assess da and its predictors among the companions of hospitalized patients with covid-19. methods: this descriptive-analytical study was conducted in 2020 on 200 companions of patients with covid-19 hospitalized in imam khomeini, bouali, and razi hospitals in sari and qaemshahr, iran. sampling was performed conveniently. data were collected using a demographic and clinical characteristics questionnaire for patients, a demographic and clinical characteristics questionnaire for companions, and templer da scale. the spss software (v. 21.0) was used for data analysis via the independent sample t test, chi-square test, pearson’s correlation analysis, and multiple linear regression analysis. results: the mean score of da was 47.21 ± 10.62 (in the possible range of 15–75). participants’ da had significant relationship with their gender, their patients’ anorexia and arterial oxygen saturation, and covid-19 among other family members (p < 0.05). participants’ gender, patients’ anorexia and arterial oxygen saturation, and covid-19 among other family members significantly explained 0.066% of the total variance of da (p = 0.002). the strongest predictors of da were arterial oxygen saturation (β = 0.17; p = 0.01) and gender (β = 0.15; p = 0.0). conclusion: the companions of hospitalized patients with covid-19 experience high levels of da and hence, interventions are needed to reduce their da.