COVID-19 pandemic and emotional health: Social psychiatry perspective

The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Family Well-Being: A Literature Review

Background: COVID-19 has changed family life, including employment status, financial security, the mental health of individual family members, children's education, family well-being, and family resilience. The aim of this study is to analyze the previous studies in relation to family well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A literature review was conducted on PubMed, Medline, Web of Science, and Scopus for studies using a cross-sectional or quasi-experimental design published from their inception to October 15, 2020, using the keywords “COVID-19,” “pandemic,” “coronavirus,” “family,” “welfare,” “well-being,” and “resilience.” A manual search on Google Scholar was used to find relevant articles based on the eligibility criteria in this study. The presented conceptual framework is based on the family stress model to link the inherent pandemic hardships and the family well-being. Results: The results show that family income loss/economic difficulties, job loss, worsening mental health, and illness were reported in some families during the COVID-19 pandemic. Family life has been influenced since the early stage of the pandemic by the implementation of physical distancing, quarantine, and staying at home to curb the spread of coronavirus. During the pandemic, it is important to maintain family well-being by staying connected with communication, managing conflict, and making quality time within family. Conclusion: The government should take action to mitigate the social, economic, and health impacts of the pandemic on families, especially those who are vulnerable to losing household income. Promoting family resilience through shared beliefs and close relationships within families is needed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

How Did the Mental Health Care System in India Respond to COVID 19 Pandemic?

India with a population of 1.3 billion has a unique health care system in its different states. Mental health care varies widely across the country and this became even more apparent after the COVID-19 pandemic set in. This paper examines the various strategies in response to COVID-19 adopted by the Government of India, the health departments of the individual states, and other private players such as on-government organizations and the civil society. The cessation of many services including outpatient and inpatient care and the scarcity of medicines were serious impacts of COVID-19. The prolonged lockdown in many parts of the country impeded access to mental health care services since public transport was unavailable. This led to many relapses in persons with serious mental disorders. The emergence of new cases of psychosis and an increase in suicides were also seen. Tele consultations came to the fore and many helplines were started offering counseling and guidance regarding the availability of mental health care facilities. While these helped the urban dwellers, those in remote and rural areas were unable to use these services effectively. Many mental health wards were used for COVID-19 patients and mental health professionals were deployed for COVID-19 related duty. The severely mentally ill, the homeless mentally ill, and the elderly were especially vulnerable. Based on our experience with COVID-19, we urge a strong call for action, in terms of strengthening the primary care facilities and increasing the manpower resources to deliver mental health care.

Do we experience pandemic fatigue? current state, predictors, and prevention

There is an emerging literature on the mental and physical exhaustion due to the COVID-19 related restrictions. Some individuals seem to exercise fewer precautions recently in comparison to the onset of the pandemic in preventing the spread of the COVID-19. This phenomenon is described as pandemic fatigue. Though acknowledged in conceptual articles and news reports, there is a lack of empirical evidence pertaining to pandemic fatigue. We collected data from 516 adult participants to investigate pandemic fatigue and its relations to fear of coronavirus, intolerance of uncertainty, apathy, and self-care. 34.40% of the participants reported that the level of COVID-19-related precautions they take have decreased in comparison to measures they took at the onset of the pandemic. Additionally, our model examining the role of fear of coronavirus, intolerance of uncertainty, and apathy as mediated by self-care predicting pandemic fatigue demonstrated acceptable to excellent goodness-of-fit indices. The fact that one in every three individuals is taking fewer precautions is not only a threat to the individuals' own health but also to the public. Given that individuals are experiencing pandemic fatigue, governments should consider paying more attention to the biopsychosocial nature of humans in ordering restrictions and planning necessary precautions.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12144-021-02397-w.

Screening of the use of benzodiazepines during COVID-19 pandemic in the general population

Benzodiazepines have been commonly prescribed for the treatment of anxiety and insomnia in the last few decades. There has been a rising concern regarding safety of benzodiazepines due to overdose related deaths, addictions and cognitive side effects. COVID-19 pandemic is expected to cause a mental health crisis. Several studies have shown an increase in anxiety and insomnia. Тhe prescriptions of benzodiazepines could increase due to increase in anxiety and insomnia. The pandemic calls for a rapid adaptation of conventional medical practices to meet the evolving needs of such vulnerable patients. COVID-19 patients may frequently require treatment with psychotropic medications. This pandemic is leading to additional health problems such as stress, anxiety, depressive symptoms, insomnia, denial, anger and fear, globally. The COVID-19 pandemic is a challenge to humanity. It is not only a health crisis but also a social crisis. The life is unlikely to be the same after we come out of the pandemic. There will be changes at the level of individuals, families, communities, states, nations, international relationships, and the way all of us will deal with a range of human and environmental situations. Disasters are always associated with increased rates of emotional health needs from distress to specific disorders, such as posttraumatic stress disorder. Past experiences have shown psychosocial interventions, ranging from self‑care, psychological first aid, counseling, social support and formal psychiatric care can minimize the emotional health impact of disasters. These activities can be initiated by individuals and professionals. Keywords: coronavirus, COVID-19, mental health, benzodiazepines