The World Health Organization (WHO) has released findings of its new survey involving 130 countries that provided the first global data to show the devastating impact of COVID-19 on access to mental health services.
The survey – conducted from June to August 2020 among 130 countries across WHO’s six regions – found the COVID-19 pandemic had disrupted and or halted critical mental health services in 93 per cent of countries worldwide, while the demand for mental health was also increasing.
WHO stated countries reported widespread disruption of many kinds of critical mental health services.
It also found:
– more than 60 per cent reported disruptions to mental health services for vulnerable people, including children and adolescents (72 per cent), older adults (70 per cent), and women requiring antenatal or postnatal services (61 per cent);
– 67 per cent saw disruptions to counselling and psychotherapy; 65 per cent to critical harm reduction services; and 45 per cent to opioid agonist maintenance treatment for opioid dependence;
– 35 per cent reported disruptions to emergency interventions, including those for people experiencing prolonged seizures; severe substance use withdrawal syndromes, and delirium, often a sign of a serious underlying medical condition;
– 30 per cent reported disruptions to access for medications for mental, neurological and substance use disorders;
– nearly three quarters reported at least partial disruptions to school and workplace mental health services (78 per cent and 75 per cent, respectively).
WHO has previously highlighted the chronic underfunding of mental health: prior to the pandemic, countries were spending less than 2 per cent of their national health budgets on mental health, and struggling to meet their populations’ needs.
“And the pandemic is increasing demand for mental health services. Bereavement, isolation, loss of income and fear are triggering mental health conditions or exacerbating existing ones,” WHO stated.
“Many people may be facing increased levels of alcohol and drug use, insomnia, and anxiety.”
WHO says it has issued guidance to countries on how to maintain essential services – including mental health services – during COVID-19 and recommends that countries allocate resources to mental health as an integral component of their response and recovery plans.
It urged countries to monitor changes and disruptions in services so they could address it as required.
Dr Balram Pandit, the head of Psychiatry at the Fiji National University’s College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, said prevailing societal issues could be addressed by understanding how mental health and well-being affected people’s daily living.
He said people could formulate strategies around underlying problems and implementing established and cost-effective interventions at various levels.
“Optimising mental health of citizens not only save lives and improve their quality of life, but it also has a direct positive impact on the GDP of any nation, as it alleviates the economic burden caused by disabilities secondary to mental health problems,” Dr Pandit said in a statement.
