Objective  To examine mental health status among medical staff from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang) during the containment of coronovirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic in Huber province.

  Methods  From January 28 to February 29, 2020, we conducted a survey with Zung′s Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) via online platform among 386 medical staff dispatched by Xinjiang health administrative and engaged in front line work of COVID-19 in Hubei province. The SAS scores of the medical staff were analyzed and compared to those of national norms. Descriptive statistics, univariate analysis and regression analysis were adopted in data analysis.

  Results  Among 361 valid respondents (93.5% of all participants), the overall SAS score was higher than that of national norm and 285 (78.95%) were detected with anxiety symptom, of them 187 (51.80%), 87 (24.10%), and 11 (3.05%) were assessed with mild, moderate, and severe anxiety, respectively. Significant impact factors of mental symptoms of the medical staff were fear score, cumulated duration for working in isolation region, nationality, whether working in isolation region, and the type of ward a staff working in (P < 0.05 for all).

  Conclusion  The mental symptoms are generally mild among the medical staff from Xinjiang during COVID-19 epidemic control in Huber province and mainly influence by whether working in an isolation region; the staff with the cumulated 5 – 8 days of working in an isolation region had more serious psychological stress reaction.