Health Impact Of COVID-19 Pandemic Research Articles

Mental Health Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Frontline Healthcare Workers (Medical and Paramedical Staff)

Mental Health Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Frontline Healthcare Workers (Medical and Paramedical Staff)

Self-reported mental health status of pregnant women in Sweden during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional survey

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to unprecedented worries and challenges for pregnant women due to social restrictions and changes in maternity care provision. We aimed to investigate the mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic on pregnant women in Sweden and explore factors associated with poor perinatal mental health in this specific context.MethodThis was a nation-wide cross-sectional survey of pregnant women living in Sweden. Validated questionnaires were distributed through non-profit organizations´ websites and social media channels from May 2020 to February 2021. Perinatal depression, anxiety, and acute stress reaction were assessed using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) and Impact Event Scale (Revised) (IES-R), respectively. Sociodemographic characteristics and self-perceived mental well-being were also obtained. Factors associated with mental health outcomes were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression model.ResultsAmong a total of 470 participants, 43.2% (n = 203) reported depression (EPDS ≥13), 25.7% (n = 121) moderate to severe anxiety (GAD-7 score ≥ 10), and 23.7% (n = 110) moderate to severe acute stress reaction (IES-R ≥ 33). 27.4% participants (n = 129) expressed concerns regarding their mental well-being during the pandemic. Pregnant mothers who had sick family members reported poorer mental health outcomes than those who did not (median [Interquartile range (IQR)] EPDS scores: 14.0 [8.75–18.0] vs 11.0 [6.25–15.0], p < .001; median (IQR) GAD7 scores: 7.0 [4.0–12.25] vs 6.0 [3.0–9.0], p = .003); median (IQR) IES-R scores: 20.0 [9.0–38.0] vs 15.0 [7.0–30.0], p = .048). Logistic regression analyses revealed that risk factors for poor mental health outcomes were having a sick family member with any illness, unemployment, and experiencing a substantially stressful life event. Having a higher educational level and a younger age during the pandemic were protective.ConclusionDepression and anxiety were highly prevalent among pregnant women in Sweden during the COVID-19 pandemic, indicating a need for professional mental health support for this vulnerable group of population. Unemployment was an associated risk factor whereas younger age and higher educational level were protective suggesting an important role of socio-economic factors in modulating the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on perinatal mental health.

Disaster, disruption and disability- a multi-center parental survey of the mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic on children with and without disabilities in India

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the pediatric population worldwide, with Children with developmental disabilities (CwDD) being particularly vulnerable. Data on the magnitude of the impact of the pandemic on children in India, particularly CwDD is much needed. The aim of the study was to explore parental perceptions of the impact of the COVID lockdown on daily behaviors and mental health outcomes of Typically developing children (TDC) compared to CwDD.Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted on 708 parents of CwDD and TDC (age 2-18 years) in three centers in northern and western India, using an adapted version of the CoRonavIruS health and Impact Survey (CRISIS) questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, 2-sample t-tests, and linear regression models were analyzed.Results: Opportunities to step out reduced equally for both CwDD and TDC (p&gt;0.05), while social isolation was perceived more negatively (p&lt;0.001) by TDC. Family’s exposure to COVID was significantly lower (p=0.01) for CwDD, while financial stress due to COVID-19 was reported by both groups (p&gt;0.05). Although composite scores for mental health during the pandemic were not significantly different between CwDD and TDC, parents reported worsening of children’s mental health outcomes with 18.29% CwDD and 25.48% TDC as sad, 28.99% CwDD, and 32.03% TDC as anxious, 56.33% CwDD and 51.78% TDC as irritable and 40.47% CwDD and 38.08% TDC as distracted.Conclusions: As per parental perceptions, mental health outcomes of CwDD and TDC have deteriorated similarly during the lockdown. However, the implications may be more severe for CwDD whose levels of independence, opportunities for participation, and mental health status were lower even pre-COVID.

Mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic in India: A web-based community survey

Background: The coronavirus pandemic has impacted the globe, altering lives of people in all domains, and added insecurity, thereby taking a toll on their mental health. Addressing the parallel surge of psychological problems and identifying the vulnerable population is of equal concern. This study aims at assessing the symptoms of anxiety and depression in the population during the coronavirus pandemic. Methodology: It was a cross-sectional methodological web-based survey to assess psychological influence of the coronavirus pandemic. A sociodemographic pro forma, validated questionnaire consisting questions about awareness regarding coronavirus, and Goldberg Anxiety and Depression Scale were included in the survey. Results: A total of 1027 participants completed the survey questionnaire. Clinically significant anxiety and depressive symptoms were found in 17.9% and 40.7%, respectively. There was statistically significant difference in prevalence of anxiety symptoms by gender (P = 0.009), age group (P = 0.030), marital status (P = 0.001), and occupation (P = 0.012). Depressive symptoms also significantly differed across age group (P = 0.001), marital status (P = 0.000), education (P = 0.020), occupation (P = 0.009), income group (P = 0.038), and place of living (P = 0.039). A significant difference of knowledge (about COVID-19) was seen between the groups with and without clinically significant depressive symptoms. Distress was noted mostly with information overload and the fear of contracting coronavirus infection. Conclusion: More than one-third of participants had clinically significant psychological symptoms. This suggests the requirement of more structured and long-term studies, and the need for appropriate mental health services to masses.

Impact of COVID-19 on Mental Health of Aged Population in India: An Online, Cross-sectional Survey

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic impacted the lives of millions of people around the world. The stress due to the increased risk of morbidity and mortality among the elderly along with the lockdown measures can impact the mental health of older aged adults. Hence, the current study aimed to assess the mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic on older adults in India. Methods: The current study was part of an online, cross-sectional survey conducted in eight countries. For the current study, participants were included if they were Indians, were at least 55 years of age, had Internet access, were residing in India, and were willing to participate in the study. A semi-structured questionnaire to assess the sociodemographic data and worries related to the COVID-19 pandemic, Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and Impact of Events Scale-Revised were applied. Results: A total of 181 older adults participated. The most common worries were the impact of COVID on society (65.2%) and on friends and family (50.8%). About 14.9%, 2.8%, and 14.9% of participants were screened positive for depression, probable posttraumatic stress disorder, and anxiety based on PHQ-9, IES-R, and GAD-7, respectively. There was a significant association of both depression and anxiety with preexisting mental illness, worry about transmitting COVID to others, ability to care for others, impact of COVID-19 on one's own health, finances, and society. Conclusions: Higher levels of altruism and “psychological jointedness” in the Indian family could have led to this unique finding that older adults were more worried about the impact of pandemic on others, than self.

Academic experiences, physical and mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic on students and lecturers in health care education

BackgroundIn keeping with nation-wide efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19, Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) transformed fully its pedagogical delivery to online mode, where we investigated teaching and learning experiences, physical and mental health of undergraduate students and lecturers during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional study on undergraduate students and lecturers in a health science faculty using a self-developed pretested questionnaire through anonymous online data collection method.ResultsFifty-six lecturers (100% response rate) and 279 students (93.3% response rate) participated. The positive experiences reported by students include becoming independent (72.8%) and adapting to online learning (67.4%), while lecturers learned new teaching techniques (50.0%) and became more innovative (50.0%) by learning new tools (48.2%). However, studying at home caused students to feel more distracted (72.0%) with a feeling of uncertainty towards examinations (66.7%), while lecturers felt that students’ laboratory skills were compromised (44.6%). Even though online delivery of assessments enabled lecturers to explore all options (50.0%), they found it difficult to maintain appropriate questions (41.1%) and fair assessments (37.5%). Majority of students missed eating out (68.8%) and felt a lack of participation in extracurricular activities (64.9%), while lecturers reported more time for exercise (51.8%), despite having more screen time (50.0%) and computer-related physical stress (44.6%). In terms of mental health, increased stress in students was reported (64.9%), though they had more time for self-reflection (54.8%). Although lecturers reported a closer relationship with family (44.6%), they also felt more stressed due to deadlines, unexpected disruptions and higher workloads (44.6%) as well as concerns related to work, family and self (39.3%).ConclusionIn this abrupt shift to online teaching, students and lecturers in our study identified both positive and negative experiences including the impact on their physical and mental health. Our findings are important to provide the evidence for online pedagogical benefits and can serve to promote the enhancement and adaptation of digital technology in education. Our findings also aim to promote the importance of addressing physical and mental health issues of the university community’s well-being through provision of emotional and mental health support and appropriate programs.

Public health impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the emergency healthcare system: a region-wide analysis

Abstract Background The Lombardy region has been one of the Italian regions most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, with 22.7% of total Italian cases and 33.9% of total deaths. The emergency healthcare system was under deep stress throughout the period under consideration due to the admission of COVID-19 patients to the Emergency Department (ED) and had to be thoroughly reorganized. Methods We performed a retrospective descriptive analysis of patients admitted into the ED recorded in the Lombardy online regional portal called EUOL. We compared the data registered in the EUOL with the patients admitted to the EDs from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2019 and from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2020. Results The number of admissions to the ED decreased by 32.5% in 2020 compared to 2019, reaching the lowest number in March and April. However, the percentage of patients hospitalised after ED significantly increased in 2020 compared to 2019 (OR 1.47, p &amp;lt; 0.0001), reflecting the management of patients with a more severe clinical condition. Indeed, the number of patients classified as red or yellow codes at hospital admission was significantly higher in 2020 than in 2019 (p &amp;lt; 0.0001). Moreover, more patients arrived at the ED by ambulance in 2020 (21.7% in 2020 versus 15.1% in 2019. OR 1.56, p &amp;lt; 0.0001), with more than 35% of patients transported by ambulance in March and April 2020. Conclusions Our results showed, on the one hand, inappropriate visits to the EDs by non-emergency and low complex cases in 2019 before the pandemic and, on the other hand, they also highlighted that patients in critical condition were reluctant to visit the ED due to the fear of getting infected. This analysis showed that EMS played a crucial role in the overall public health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing the percentage of patients transported to the hospital with a severe clinical condition, reorganizing and allocating resources to the areas that were most affected during the pandemic. Key messages This is a descriptive analysis of the public health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the admission to Emergency Departments in 2020. Our results underline the need to monitor the pandemic’s evolution in order to reorganize the hospitals that admitted the COVID-19 patients.

The mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic in Dhaka

The mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic in Dhaka

The Mental Health Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Health Care Workers and Coping Strategies: A Systematic Literature Review

&lt;strong&gt;Background&lt;/strong&gt;: In December 2019, the COVID-19 outbreak originated in Wuhan, China. Since then, this virus has spread at a very rapid rate affecting many countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) subsequently declared a global pandemic, and a range of precautions have been implemented to reduce the spread of the virus. Some of these precautions included social distancing, self-isolation, and quarantine of those who have contracted or potentially contracted COVID-19. Healthcare workers (HCWs) are at high risk because of the constant contact with infected patients for extended periods or by exposure to a patient’s environment or biological samples. This may cause fear of transmitting the infection to their families. Also, the extended working hours put them under severe stress, fatigue, and adverse social life. All of these factors affect their behaviors and attitudes. &lt;strong&gt;Purpose:&lt;/strong&gt; to explore the mental health impact of COVID-19 on HCWs as this will be reflected on their performance on such crisis. Besides, we aim to investigate HCWs' coping strategies during the pandemic and provide coping recommendations based on evidence. &lt;strong&gt;Methods:&lt;/strong&gt; A systematic review using PRISMA methodology was used through three electronic databases, including PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Scopus. All cross-sectional studies that were published in English and that assessed the mental health impact of COVID-19 on HCWs or/and coping strategies adopted by them were included. &lt;strong&gt;Results&lt;/strong&gt;: A total of one hundred and forty articles total were retrieved from the three databases and were reviewed for relevance. reviews for relevance after remove duplicate. We Ended up with twenty-four recent studies from 2020 that were included in the analysis. As COVID-19 has started in China, our review identified many studies that were done there on the subject of HCWs mental health due to the crisis. Italy took the second place in the number of studies. Nurses and physicians were the populations targeted in many studies. &lt;strong&gt;Conclusion: &lt;/strong&gt;COVID-19 has created much pressure on HCWs. This pressure has increased the following mental health complaints: anxiety, depression, insomnia, and stress. Many studies have emphasized the effects of social support as an effective way of coping with COVID-19.

Prevalence and Factors Associated with Mental Health Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic in Bangladesh: A Survey-Based Cross-Sectional Study.

Background:Feelings of isolation, insecurity, and instability triggered by COVID-19 could have a long-term impact on the mental health status of individuals.Objectives:The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of mental health symptoms (anxiety, depression, and stress) in Bangladesh and the factors associated with these symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods:From 1 to 30 April 2020, we used a validated self-administered questionnaire to conduct a cross-sectional study on 10,609 participants through an online survey platform. We assessed mental health status using the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). The total depression, anxiety, and stress subscale scores were divided into normal, mild, moderate, severe, and multinomial logistic regression was used to examine associated factors.Findings:The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 15%, 34%, and 15% for mild, moderate, and severe depressive symptoms, respectively. The prevalence of anxiety symptoms was 59% for severe anxiety symptoms, 14% for moderate anxiety symptoms, and 14% for mild anxiety symptoms, while the prevalence for stress levels were 16% for severe stress level, 22% for moderate stress level, and 13% for mild stress level. Multivariate analyses revealed that the most consistent factors associated with mild, moderate, and severe of the three mental health subscales (depression, anxiety, and stress) were respondents who lived in Dhaka and Rangpur division, females, those who self-quarantined in the previous seven days before the survey, and those respondents who experienced chills, breathing difficulty, dizziness, and sore throat.Conclusion:Our results showed that about 64%, 87%, and 61% of the respondents in Bangladesh reported high levels of depression, anxiety, and stress, respectively. There is a need for mental health support targeting women and those who self-quarantined or lived in Dhaka and Rangpur during the pandemic.

Coping with the aftermath of COVID: Industrial resurgence, mental health, and resilience.

COVID-19 pandemic has affected billions of people worldwide. Economies world over have suffered slowdown with a direct impact on industry. The vulnerable industrial worker has suffered both financially and mentally. As the pandemic has begun to slow down, the industry has started showing signs of growth and economy appears to be coming back on track. Financial losses may be recovered in time, but the mental health impact of pandemic is likely to be long-lasting. In the aftermath of COVID-19, mental health needs of vulnerable sections of societies need to be addressed. An attempt has been made to understand the mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic on industrial workers. Preventive and promotive measures for positive mental health of industrial workers are discussed with a focus on resilience-building.

The Prevalence of Psychological Health Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic Among Palestinian Population. A Cross-sectional Study

Introduction : The first outbreak was documented in December 2019, in Wuhan, China, as pneumonia of unknown etiology related to a seafood market exposure. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, the first cases had been detected at a hotel in the Bethlehem area, where a group of Greek tourists had visited the hotel in late February 2020. There are many previous studies shown that communicable diseases such as Ebola and SARS showed an impact on mental health includes depression, anxiety, and drug abuse. The aims of the study are to assess the prevalence of psychological well-being responses resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic on Palestine general population. Methods : During the middle stage of the outbreak, researchers conducted an online-based survey using a snowballing sample technique. The survey collected data about socio-demographic characteristics and psychological well-being using the general health questionnaire wish consists of (28) questions aimed to assess these sections dealt with somatic symptoms, anguish/anxiety, social dysfunction, and depression. Results : Our survey recruited 1200 subjects of the general public of Palestine. More than two-thirds of subjects were female and their age between 20-39 years. The prevalence of the psychological well-being of the Palestinian subjects. Almost 83% have poor psychological well-being, while 17% have good psychological well-being. Significant differences were found in gender (p=&lt;0.001), marital status (p=&lt;0.001), place of residence (p=&lt;.001), types of work (p=.011), working status (p=&lt;.001), a committee to quarantine (p=.023) and knowing someone who were infected with coronavirus (p=&lt;.001). Conclusion: Our findings can be used to construct an urgent psychological intervention focused on the general population and to implement public mental health policies in combination with pandemic response efforts in the middle stages of the event. Keywords : Prevalence, General Health, Psychological Health, COVID-19, Pandemic DOI: 10.7176/JHMN/82-12 Publication date: November 30 th 2020

The Prevalence of Psychological Health Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic Among Palestinian Population. A Cross-sectional Study

Introduction : The first outbreak was documented in December 2019, in Wuhan, China, as pneumonia of unknown etiology related to a seafood market exposure. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, the first cases had been detected at a hotel in the Bethlehem area, where a group of Greek tourists had visited the hotel in late February 2020. There are many previous studies shown that communicable diseases such as Ebola and SARS showed an impact on mental health includes depression, anxiety, and drug abuse. The aims of the study are to assess the prevalence of psychological well-being responses resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic on Palestine general population. Methods : During the middle stage of the outbreak, researchers conducted an online-based survey using a snowballing sample technique. The survey collected data about socio-demographic characteristics and psychological well-being using the general health questionnaire wish consists of (28) questions aimed to assess these sections dealt with somatic symptoms, anguish/anxiety, social dysfunction, and depression. Results : Our survey recruited 1200 subjects of the general public of Palestine. More than two-thirds of subjects were female and their age between 20-39 years. The prevalence of the psychological well-being of the Palestinian subjects. Almost 83% have poor psychological well-being, while 17% have good psychological well-being. Significant differences were found in gender (p=&lt;0.001), marital status (p=&lt;0.001), place of residence (p=&lt;.001), types of work (p=.011), working status (p=&lt;.001), a committee to quarantine (p=.023) and knowing someone who were infected with coronavirus (p=&lt;.001). Conclusion: Our findings can be used to construct an urgent psychological intervention focused on the general population and to implement public mental health policies in combination with pandemic response efforts in the middle stages of the event. Keywords : Prevalence, General Health, Psychological Health, COVID-19, Pandemic DOI: 10.7176/JHMN/82-10 Publication date: November 30 th 2020

Mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic on Spanish healthcare workers.

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Comment on "Attitude, practice, behavior, and mental health impact of COVID-19 on doctors".

Sir, The article by Chatterjee et al.[1] tries to explore the mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic on doctors. This is an extremely important issue in the ongoing state of pandemic as doctors and health-care workers across the country are facing unprecedented challenges and pressures, and yet, they are trying their best to serve the society in the best possible manner. However, we have a few concerns regarding this study. The authors had planned to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of doctors about COVID-19. However, except the first question, there were no further questions exploring either knowledge about or attitude toward COVID-19 among doctors. The rest of the questions explored duty hours, availability of protective gear, practice of preventive measures, and other aspects. The authors have not mentioned about the online survey platform used to conduct the survey. This would have been an interesting piece of information as they later mentioned that the data was entered into Microsoft Excel datasheet. This is difficult to follow as most of the online survey engines provide collected data as prefilled downloadable datasheets, and in fact, some of them also present analysis and pie charts within their platforms. The standard deviation (S.D) is larger than mean in case of depression and anxiety subscale ([Table 2] of the article by Chatterjee et al.[1]) which indicates a high possibility of data being skewed or presence of outliers. This shall have serious implications on some of other analyses carried out later, i.e., t-test and logistic regression. These tests are based on the assumption that the data has normal distribution.[2] The results of these tests shall not hold true if this assumption is violated. After looking at these values of S.D, the authors could have carried out a test to check for normal distribution of the data. The authors are incorrect in reporting that 42.8% of the respondents had one or more comorbidities. Figures presented in Table 1 of the article[1] show that 94.1% of the participants (all of them are doctors) have at least one among the three serious comorbidities, namely hypertension, diabetes mellitus, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and in fact, more than half of them (57%) suffer from all the three. These figures are far higher than the prevalence of either of these illnesses among Indian adults.[345] Proportion of individuals having all the three simultaneously is likely to be far lesser. This suggests that the authors have got a sample of a relatively sick group of doctors who are likely to develop a complicated illness in case they contract coronavirus infection. Further, while reporting comorbidities and carrying out the Chi-square test, the authors have created numerous categories due to which eight cells among the 2 × 8 table for this section have a value of n <5, which again violates basic assumption for Chi-square test. It would have been better to combine some of these categories to avoid small numbers in cells. Alternatively, Fisher's exact test could have been carried out.[6] Furthermore, the sociodemographic details of respondents have been presented repeatedly across Tables 1, 3 and 4 in the article.[1] This could have been avoided. The authors have not mentioned if the study was approved by the Institutional Ethics Committee (IEC). We hope that this is only a faux pas and the approval of IEC was actually obtained. Finally, in the list of references, the sixth reference refers to an entire issue of a journal. It would have been prudent to clearly mention one or more articles from which the cited information was taken. Financial support and sponsorship Nil. Conflicts of interest There are no conflicts of interest.

Impact of COVID-19 on mental health: Update from the United Kingdom.

In January 2020, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the outbreak of a new corona virus disease, COVID-19 to be public health Emergency of International concern and by March 2020 it had progressed rapidly across several continents to be a pandemic. After COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic the U.K. Government placed strict measures in mid-March 2020 to limit spread by enforcing social distancing, travel restrictions and complete lockdown. In U.K. by end of April 2020 official estimates of confirmed COVID-19 positive cases reached 161,000 and the number of deaths has exceeded 26,000 in hospitals and in care homes. COVID-19 continues to have an impact on all aspects of life in U.K. The Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych), London, a leading professional body of U.K. and global mental health professionals was prompt to act in this public health emergency. RCPsych has issued guidance for clinicians, patients & carers, organised a series of webinars to support members and undertook a membership survey. It has played a crucial role in influencing national policy decisions. This article will focus on mental health impact of COVID-19 pandemic in U.K. and the initiatives taken by RCPsych.