Psychometric Properties of the Primary Care PTSD Screen for DSM-5: Findings From Family Members of Chinese Healthcare Workers During the Outbreak of COVID-19

Background: Minimal research has examined utility of PC-PTSD-5 in family members of frontline medical workers. The aims of our study were to develop and elucidate the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the PC-PTSD-5 and to determine its usefulness in screening for possible PTSD in relatives of Chinese healthcare workers during the COVID-19. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional research in the relatives of medical staffs working in a general hospital during the COVID-19. Descriptive analysis was used to characterize demographic information of family members to find factors associated with PTSD symptoms. For reliability test, the internal consistency of PC-PTSD-5 was accessed using Cronbach's alpha coefficient. A validity test was assessed by Pearson's correlation between scales. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the optimal cutoff score with the maximum Youden Index in this study. Results: The result of demographic information indicated that gender and the type of work undertaken by medical staff in the family have a potential impact on the PTSD symptoms of medical staff's family members. Cronbach's alpha coefficient of PC-PTSD-5 was 0.83, indicating the high reliability. Good validity was also demonstrated by Pearson coefficient. By calculating the Youden index, a cutoff score of 2 was found to be optimal in our study, with sensitivity of 80.74% and specificity of 88.43%. Conclusions: Our study has demonstrated the robust psychometric strengths of the PC-PTSD-5, introducing a reliable tool for screening PTSD among vulnerable and neglected families of these medical workers.

Automated summary

Gender and the type of work undertaken by medical staff in the family have potential impacts on the PTSD symptoms of medical staff's family members. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the PC-PTSD-5 was 0.83, indicating high reliability. By calculating the Youden index, a cutoff score of 2 was found to be optimal in our study, with a sensitivity of 80.74% and specificity of 88.43%.