Telepsychotherapy During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Experience of Lebanese Mental Health Professionals

Teleconsultation Platforms Versus WhatsApp Consultations: Evaluating Patients and Physicians' Attitudes

Background: Since the 1990s, society has witnessed a surge in information and communication technologies that extended to the health care system. Teleconsultation platforms have become widely established tools that provide an opportunity for emerging countries such as Lebanon to expand and advance health care services. However, their use in Lebanon remains limited considering many people's preference to resort to nonmedical platforms such as WhatsApp for consultations. Methods: The purpose of this mixed-method study is to evaluate patients' and physicians' attitudes toward teleconsultation platforms versus WhatsApp consultations in Lebanon. In the quantitative component, 1,467 patients were administered a self-developed questionnaire, while in the qualitative component, a semistructured interview was conducted with 14 physicians practicing in Lebanon. Results: Results revealed that teleconsultation platforms and WhatsApp are not interchangeable. Patients' and physicians' experiences, perceptions, and satisfaction with teleconsultation platforms and WhatsApp are discussed. Conclusions: Individual and governmental recommendations for safer, more controlled, and more ethical online consultation practices are provided for both physicians and patients, through both modalities.

Predictors of Mental Health Literacy in a Sample of Health Care Major Students: Pilot Evaluation Study

BACKGROUND

The numerous mental health awareness campaigns during the COVID-19 pandemic have shifted our understanding and perception of mental health.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study is to evaluate predictors of mental health literacy (MHL), that is, one's knowledge and beliefs about mental disorders. We evaluate whether digital health literacy, empathy, and mentalizing contribute to MHL.

METHODS

Our sample consisted of 89 health care major students, aged between 17 and 32 years, studying at a university in Lebanon. The Mental Health Literacy Scale for Healthcare Students (MHLS-HS), the eHealth Literacy Questionnaire (eHLQ), the Basic Empathy Scale (BES), and the Reflective Functioning Questionnaire-8 (RFQ-8) were used.

RESULTS

Multiple regression analyses revealed that the Engagement in Own Health subscale of digital health literacy constituted a predictor of MHL. While empathy and mentalizing did not directly predict MHL, they were found to predict components of MHL.

CONCLUSIONS

This is the first study to evaluate digital health literacy, empathy, and mentalizing as predictors of MHL in Lebanon, a country where mental health is still considered taboo. Moreover, this pilot study is the first to provide some support for the predictive role of some digital health literacy subscales on MHL in light of the rise of the digital era following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Navigating the crisis: A review of COVID-19 research and the importance of academic publications - The case of a private university in Lebanon

Objectives

The threat of the Corona virus has had a profound global impact, prompting extensive discussions among academicians and medical researchers seeking to understand its implications across various fields. Consequently this review aims to explore the COVID-19 research approaches adopted at the Lebanese American University (LAU) between 2019 and 2022 and, to eventually shed light on the importance of the academic publications during this crisis period in the context of Lebanon.

Design Data sources Eligibility criteria

Studies related to "Coronavirus", "SARS-CoV-2," or "COVID-19″ were extracted from the SciVal database spanning the period 2019 to 2022. The identified studies, totaling 97 publications, were indexed in Scopus and Web of Science and underwent narrative analysis along with an evaluation using a predefined scale to determine their eligibility. The majority of the studies were literature reviews, followed by observational studies, modeling studies, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses.

Results

The majority of the identified studies (31 %) were focused on the medical field, primarily the impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Additionally, 22 % of studies discussed updates related to global finance and economic markets, while 18 % addressed the psychological burden of the pandemic. Other areas covered in the literature included the impact on performance, nutrition, tourism, politics, and telecommunication.

Conclusion

This study marks a pioneering endeavor that sparks a crucial dialogue regarding peer-reviewed scientific literature during a period of immense need for accurate information. The prevalence of literature reviews can be attributed to the demand for swift dissemination of preliminary findings and the increased call for COVID-19-related research. However, despite the abundance of publications in this specific domain, it is imperative for future research to shift its focus towards the development of novel therapies, preventive measures, psychological insights, and strategies to address the socioeconomic and financial burdens stemming from the pandemic. This study has the potential to establish a standardized framework for addressing similar crises across diverse fields and at various levels.

Limitations

The review readily acknowledges certain limitations. By solely relying on specific databases like Scopus and WoS, there is a possibility of inadvertently overlooking relevant studies. Although the study provides insights into the impact of COVID-19 across different fields and their respective publications, it is important to recognize that the continuous updates to databases and potential exclusions of related studies may have imposed constraints on the findings. Moreover, the urgency for expeditious peer-review during the pandemic may have heightened the chances of errors and diminished transparency. This urgency has unfortunately increased the risk of fraudulent activities and misconduct.

Tele-psychotherapy during the COVID-19 pandemic: a mini-review

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed psychotherapy practices. Psychotherapy around the world has shifted from predominantly face-to-face settings to overwhelmingly online settings since the beginning of the pandemic. Many studies have been published on this topic, but there has been no review of the literature focused on the experience of psychotherapists. Our goal was to identify the challenging issues of teletherapy, including the efficiency of online consultations and the extent to which they are accepted by therapists and patients. A PubMed literature search using the [("Teletherapy" OR "Telebehavioral health" OR "telepsychotherapy") AND ("COVID-19")] search string retrieved 46 studies focused on mental health professionals, as detailed in a PRISMA flow diagram. Two reviewers independently screened the abstracts and excluded those that were outside the scope of the review. The selection of articles kept for review was discussed by all three authors. Overall, the review contributes to the description and evaluation of tele mental health services, including teletherapy, online counseling, digital mental health tools, and remote monitoring.

Identifying health research in the era of COVID-19: A scoping review

Background

Health improvements are considered one of the most important fields of research. Since the coronavirus disease 2019 was declared a pandemic, it might have impacted clinical and public health research in various forms.

Objectives

The goal of this study is to explore health research approaches in the era of coronavirus disease 2019.

Methods

In this scoping review, we reviewed published medical full-text studies and identified potential areas of interest of health research in the era the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic during the last 3 years within a higher educational setting. A bibliometric analysis was used to compare among published works.

Results

Among the 93 studies that met the inclusion criteria, most focused on mental health (n = 23; 24.7%). Twenty-one publications targeted coronavirus disease 2019 and its consequences on general health. Other studies have described hemato-oncological, cardiovascular, respiratory, and endocrinological diseases. 42 studies were cross-sectional or cohort studies and most of them published in Q1 journals. Almost half of them belonged to the Faculty of Medicine (49.5%) followed by the School of Arts, Sciences, and Psychology (26.9%).

Conclusions

Health research has been demonstrated to be important, at all times, especially during crises. Therefore, researchers need to invest more efforts into seeking new medical updates in various health-related fields, regardless of their correlation with coronavirus disease 2019.

Protocol for developing telephone-based brief psychosocial intervention for COVID-19 patients in India

Introduction

The ongoing Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a huge mental health impact on people, especially the infected population. They are at greater risk of developing psychological symptoms due to the fear of death and developing severe disability, lack of proper treatment and social restrictions, stigma, and discrimination. The early psychological symptoms, if ignored, may have long-term consequences on the health and well-being of COVID patients. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the mental health services have been impacted negatively, and the need for technology-based psychological interventions has been identified as an alternative treatment method. Hence, the Telephone-Based Brief Psycho-Social interventions (TBPSI) will be developed for COVID-19 patients.

Materials and Method

A five-session tele psychosocial intervention including rapport establishment and assessment, supportive counselling, activity scheduling, relaxation technique, and post-assessment will be developed based on the extensive review of the literature. Face and content validation of the intervention package will be done by the mental health experts. Further, the feasibility of the intervention program will be tested on COVID-19 patients in the Dharwad district, and later, the same will be implemented across the COVID hospitals of Karnataka state.

Discussion and Conclusion

The study results may bring new insights into the culturally sensitive technology-oriented interventions during this pandemic in the country. The paradigm may be shifted from routine treatment to cost-effective and time-based intervention in the public health system in India. The telephonic brief psychosocial interventions can be utilised as a mainstream treatment during non-emergency situations as well.