Are the anganwadi workers healthy and happy? a cross sectional study using the general health questionnaire (GHQ 12) at Mangalore, India

Background: Anganwadi Workers (AWWs) are the implementers of Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS). It is important to obtain the worker's viewpoints on their job-description, the problems they face and the levels of stress that they encounter, to address the quality of their services. The stressed AWWs are likely to be unhealthy, poorly motivated, less productive and less efficient in implementing the ICDS scheme. Thus, there is a need to evaluate the stress levels among the anganwadi workers and to understand the factors that influence the stress in this class of the population. This study was planned to study the stress among the anganwadi workers and the factors that are related to the stress. Method: This was a cross sectional study which was done on 82 anganwadi workers of Mangalore by using a General Health questionnaire (GHQ - 12). Results: As their mean age increased, more was the stress which was experienced by them. The BMI, hypertension, self-reported sleep disturbance, eye strain and the perceived gastritis were related to stress and these were statistically significant.The workers were stressed to different levels due to an inadequate supply of the ICDS food resources (P=0.042). Overall, the anganwadi workers experienced stress due to their work. Conclusion: There was stress and dissatisfaction among the AWWs who were studied. An improvement in their remuneration; a clear career path and an improved administration are also required for the better work efficiency of the anganwadi workers. There is a need to ensure both the physical and the psychological wellbeing of the workers.