What impact will coronavirus have on our mental health? Study hopes to assess long term psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
An interview with Professor Shanaya Rathod, Consultant Psychiatrist & Director of Research at Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust and Mental Health Clinical Lead at the Clinical Research Network Wessex.
We are rapidly expanding our knowledge of the clinical effects of COVID-19 on people around the world. Not just how we’re treating it, but the potential impact of long COVID and future ramifications.
But what about the mental health impact? The news has been awash with stories about the spike in domestic abuse cases reported to the police during 2020 and the rising numbers of young people needing mental health support. But these remain anecdotal until we can provide a growing wealth of research that shows the effects clearly.
In March 2020, during the first UK lockdown, it was clear to me that we needed to rapidly start building a body of research that would help us understand the impact the pandemic has had on mental health. With so much being restricted, it’s essential for us to gain an insight into the effect this has had on people’s mental wellbeing and what they need in order to thrive.
Mental wellbeing is very much an interdependent aspect of our health.
We began to put together a study, knowing that we would have to create something that would be accessible given the circumstances. We devised an online questionnaire to assess the impact and over 50 NHS trusts, universities and the Centre for Applied Research and Evaluation International Foundation (Careif) became involved in the UK. Additionally, 10 countries agreed to participate so that we could compare the impact globally.
It was important that the study was as inclusive as possible – mental health isn’t something that only impacts a certain age group, ethnicity or class. The pandemic itself has affected everyone, so capturing a broad cross section of society was essential; anyone over the age of 18 could take part.
Our initial results from the first three weeks of the study showed a range of changes to people’s mental wellbeing. There were 7,917 responses in the first three weeks (1st May – 22nd May 2020) which indicated some trends in how people were coping and the impact lockdown was having on their wellbeing.
There was an increase in the number of people reporting feeling isolated and stating that their mental wellbeing had declined during lockdown. We also saw the impact social media was having on people, with some saying that social media was adding to their worries with negative news reports.
I’m hopeful that this research will become a cornerstone for mental wellbeing development and planning across the world.
Respondents with pre-existing anxiety and panic attacks were more likely to have higher scores on anxiety, depression and trauma than others, and their coping activities reduced and confidence on coping reduced too.
Overall, evidence has shown that people’s mental health and wellbeing must be prioritised – because it’s not just the immediate impact of pandemic that will influence people. The aftermath will affect individual’s jobs, homes and relationships in addition to normal life challenges.
Our early snapshot data is part of a bigger study, the first part of the study collected data for three months from May to the end of July 2020 where we had over 28,000 responses. We did a second phase in November 2020, with over 80,000 responses, and the data collection for that has recently closed.
It’s important for us to create and add to a global data set so that we are better prepared for the future. At the moment we have such a small picture of the mental health landscape – this study will hopefully feed into the larger evidence base for better planning, resources and help for everyone to manage their mental wellbeing, especially during difficult times.
We are rapidly expanding our knowledge of the clinical effects of COVID-19 on people around the world.
We will be doing a third phase to assess the impact on people as we come out of the latest lockdown to see what happens to people’s mental wellbeing and what trends we can see.
Mental wellbeing is very much an interdependent aspect of our health. So many pieces have to be in place for us to thrive mentally – safety, nurture, security, connection, support. Working parents need access to reliable childcare to do their jobs. Students need access to their teachers and their peers to continue their education. Elderly individuals need support services and contact to avoid isolation. The list goes on and on.
We need to be better prepared for the future – building that resilience in individuals to overcome life’s challenges. Understanding what people need help with is vital for us to establish support networks to enable everyone to thrive and I’m hopeful that this research will become a cornerstone for mental wellbeing development and planning across the world.
