Abstract: Objective To investigate the physical and mental health status of clinical nurses during the outbreak of COVID-19, so as to provide evidence for them to reduce physical and mental stress and improve their working status. Methods The physical and mental health status of clinical nurses during the outbreak of COVID-19 was investigated by convenience sampling method and PSTRI psychosomatic relaxation test. The student’s t-test and ANOVA were used to analyze the difference of physical and mental health scores of different populations. Results A total of 346 nurses from 29 grade III general hospitals in Guangdong Province were investigated, with an average age of （27.54 ± 4.75） years. There were 283 females （81.79%） and 184 nurses （53.18%） in emergency department. The average score of PSTRI physical and mental health was （72.30 ± 21.81）, of which 49.13% were PSTRI score ≥71, with an average score of （91.28 ± 13.74）. The PSTRI scores of nurses in different regions, departments, marital status and position titles were statistically significant （P < 0.05）, and the higher scores in different demographic characteristics were Pearl River Delta region （77.10 ± 23.24）, emergency department （77.20 ± 23.13）, unmarried （77.53 ± 21.74）, intermediate title （75.50 ± 23.32） and primary title （70.43 ± 20.49）, respectively. Conclusion The overall physical and mental stress of the clinical nurses during the outbreak of COVID-19 is high, and the physical and mental health status of nurses with different characteristics were different. Hospitals should pay attention to the physical and mental health of clinical frontline nurses, rationally allocate human resources, reduce work load and promote physical and mental health.

Key words: COVID-19, Nurse, Mental health