Briefing paper on COVID-19 and mental health: immediate and long-term impacts

Briefing paper on COVID-19 and mental health: immediate and long-term impacts

2020

This briefing paper was posted with permission from the Bond Mental Health and Psychosocial Disability Group.

While optimal suppression of the spread of Covid-19 must be a public health priority, governments are having to pay attention to the economic and mental health consequences on the population of these measures, and make difficult decision balancing these considerations. However, there is emerging evidence that can guide these decisions.

With appropriate planning and investment, measures to address population mental health can contribute to efforts to slow the spread of transmission.  If not properly considered, mental ill health, through various mechanisms, can increase risks of viral spread (e.g. through pursuing more risky behaviours), or lead to ‘reservoirs’ of continued infection where neglected populations are unable to access public health measures, including vaccination.

Therefore, this moment presents an ideal opportunity to invest in integrating mental health as a core part of Covid-19 response: to provide emergency care for populations impacted by Covid-19; to “build back better” and improve care delivery following the pandemic, leveraging the rapid pace of innovation during the pandemic; to support Covid-19 control and suppression;  and, finally, to improve health system and societal resilience against future pandemics. 

This paper provides a summary of the (emerging) body of evidence on two topics: the impact of Covid-19 on peoples’ mental health and wellbeing; and, conversely, the projected impact of mental health on the efficacy of Covid-19 prevention, treatment and control measures. It explains why it is important to rapidly invest in mental health, both to support populations impacted by Covid-19, and to achieve successful control and eventual long-term suppression of the pandemic, ‘building back better’ societies and economies.

Details

Type
Policy and advocacy
Approach(es)
Advocacy
Human rights
Policy and legislation
Disorder(s)
All mental health conditions
Region(s)
Africa
Asia
Central America and the Caribbean
Europe
Middle East
North America
Oceania
South America
Population(s)
Adults
Children and adolescents
Disability
Families and carers
Humanitarian and conflict health
Maternal and neonatal health
Minority populations
Older adults
Setting(s)
Community
Primary care
Specialist care