Psychological health during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic outbreak
Open Access
- 21 May 2020
- journal article
- review article
- Published by SAGE Publications in International Journal of Social Psychiatry
- Vol. 66 (5), 512-516
- https://doi.org/10.1177/0020764020925835
Abstract
The current ongoing pandemic outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) has globally affected 213 countries and territories with more than 2.5 million confirmed cases and thousands of casualties. The unpredictable and uncertain COVID-19 outbreak has the potential of adversely affecting the psychological health on individual and community level. Currently all efforts are focused on the understanding of epidemiology, clinical features, mode of transmission, counteract the spread of the virus, and challenges of global health, while crucially significant mental health has been overlooked in this endeavor. This review is to evaluate past outbreaks to understand the extent of adverse effects on psychological health, psychological crisis intervention, and mental health management plans. Published previous and current articles on PubMed, EMBASE, Google Scholar, and Elsevier about psychological impact of infectious diseases outbreaks and COVID-19 has been considered and reviewed. COVID-19 is leading to intense psychosocial issues and comprising mental health marking a secondary health concern all around the world. Globally implementing preventive and controlling measures, and cultivating coping and resilience are challenging factors; modified lifestyle (lockdown curfew, self-isolation, social distancing and quarantine); conspiracy theories, misinformation and disinformation about the origin, scale, signs, symptoms, transmission, prevention and treatment; global socioeconomic crisis; travel restrictions; workplace hazard control; postponement and cancellation of religious, sports, cultural and entertainment events; panic buying and hoarding; incidents of racism, xenophobia, discrimination, stigma, psychological pressure of productivity, marginalization and violence; overwhelmed medical centers and health organizations, and general impact on education, politics, socioeconomic, culture, environment and climate – are some of the risk factors to aggravate further problems.Keywords
This publication has 22 references indexed in Scilit:
- Quality of life reported by survivors after hospitalization for Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS)Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 2019
- Psychological impact of the 2015 MERS outbreak on hospital workers and quarantined hemodialysis patientsComprehensive Psychiatry, 2018
- A Critical Analysis of Debates Around Mental Health Calls in the Prehospital SettingINQUIRY: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing, 2017
- Psychological trauma of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome victims and bereaved familiesEpidemiology and Health, 2016
- Psychosocial effects of an Ebola outbreak at individual, community and international levelsBulletin of the World Health Organization, 2016
- An evaluation of psychological distress and social support of survivors and contacts of Ebola virus disease infection and their relatives in Lagos, Nigeria: a cross sectional study − 2014BMC Public Health, 2015
- The Johns Hopkins model of psychological first aid (RAPID-PFA): curriculum development and content validation.2012
- Long-term psychiatric morbidities among SARS survivorsGeneral Hospital Psychiatry, 2009
- Coronavirus Immunoreactivity in Individuals With a Recent Onset of Psychotic SymptomsSchizophrenia Bulletin, 2009
- A revisit on older adults suicides and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic in Hong KongInternational Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 2008