scholarly journals COVID-19 Pandemic and Overall Mental Health of Healthcare Professionals Globally: A Meta-Review of Systematic Reviews

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Chutiyami ◽  
Allen M. Y. Cheong ◽  
Dauda Salihu ◽  
Umar Muhammad Bello ◽  
Dorothy Ndwiga ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Systematic Reviews ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Eligibility Criterion ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Targeted Interventions ◽  
Compulsive Disorder ◽  
Mental Health Issues ◽  
Meta Review

ObjectiveThis meta-review aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of overall mental health of healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodWe conducted a comprehensive literature search on Academic Search Premier, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, and MEDLINE. A predefined eligibility criterion was used to screen the articles. The methodology quality of eligible studies was assessed using Joanna Briggs Institute checklist for systematic reviews. The data were narratively synthesised in line with the meta-review aim.ResultForty systematic reviews (represented as K = 40), which reported data from 1,828 primary studies (N) and 3,245,768 participants, met the inclusion criteria. The findings from a pooled prevalence indicate that anxiety (16–41%, K = 30, N = 701), depression (14–37%, K = 28, N = 584), and stress/post-traumatic stress disorder (18.6–56.5%, K = 24, N = 327) were the most prevailing COVID-19 pandemic-related mental health conditions affecting healthcare workers. Other reported concerns included insomnia, burnout, fear, obsessive-compulsive disorder, somatization symptoms, phobia, substance abuse, and suicidal thoughts. Considering regions/countries, the highest anxiety was reported in the United-Kingdom [22.3, 95% Confidence Interval (CI):7–38, N = 4] compared to other countries, while the highest depression was in the Middle-East, (41, 95% CI:16–60, N = 5) and stress in the Eastern Mediterranean region (61.6, 95% CI:56.4–66.8, N = 2) compared to other regions. The most significant risk factors include female gender, younger age, being a nurse, and frontline professional. The most-reported coping strategies include individual/group psychological support, family/relative support, training/orientation, and the adequacy of personal protective equipment.ConclusionIt was concluded that healthcare professionals (nurses, doctors, allied health) have experienced various mental health issues during COVID-19 pandemic. The meta-review, therefore, recommends targeted interventions and health policies that address specific mental health issues to support health professionals worldwide during the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and similar future health crises.Systematic Review Registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD4202126200, identifier: CRD42021262001.

scholarly journals Prevalence and factors associated with poor mental health among healthcare professionals in low- and lower-middle-income countries: a systematic review protocol

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Lohmann ◽  
Denny John ◽  
Aso Dzay
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Psychological Wellbeing ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Mental Health Issues

Abstract Background A healthy and productive health workforce is central to a well-functioning health system. However, health workers are at high risk of poor psychological wellbeing due to their particularly strenuous work demands. While mental health of health workers is a well-researched issue in high-income countries, research from low- and lower-middle-income countries (LLMIC) has begun to emerge only recently. The review aims to synthesize this body of research, specifically to assess the prevalence of mental health issues among health workers in LLMIC, to identify factors associated with good or poor mental health, and to highlight gaps in knowledge. Methods We will perform a systematic search of the published English and French language literature (from inception onwards) in MEDLINE, EMBASE, and PsycINFO. Eligible for inclusion are observational studies (e.g., cross-sectional, case-control, or cohort) and control arms of randomized controlled trials reporting investigations on the nature, prevalence, and factors associated with mental health or psychological wellbeing among formally trained health professionals and health associate professionals delivering health services in formal healthcare facilities in LLMIC. The primary outcomes will be burnout, depression, and general psychological wellbeing. Secondary outcomes include other specific mental health diagnoses, as well as general psychological stress, distress and/or trauma if work-related and explicitly framed as a mental health issue. Two authors will independently examine the studies against the eligibility criteria in the stages of title, abstract, and full-text study selection, as well as assess the risk of bias in included studies using standard checklists depending on study design. Disagreements will be resolved in discussion with the third author. Data will be extracted from included studies using a predefined and piloted coding framework. Given the anticipated heterogeneity of studies, we do not expect to be able to conduct meta-analysis and plan to summarize the extracted data in narrative form. The framework method will be used to organize narrative data by subthemes and explore patterns. Discussion In assessing the prevalence of mental health issues among healthcare professionals in LLMIC and identifying factors associated with positive or poor mental health, the review aims to synthesize all possible available information for policy makers and health system managers on a potentially highly important but not yet much-discussed issue and to highlight gaps in currently available knowledge. Systematic review registration International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews PROSPERO (registration number CRD42019140036)

scholarly journals Coping With COVID-19: Mindfulness-Based Approaches for Mitigating Mental Health Crisis

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Antonova ◽  
Karoly Schlosser ◽  
Rakesh Pandey ◽  
Veena Kumari
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Panic Attacks ◽  
World Population ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Compulsive Disorder ◽  
Mental Health Issues ◽  
The Impact

The novel coronavirus disease COVID-19 that first emerged in Wuhan, China, in Nov-Dec 2019 has already impacted a significant proportion of the world population. Governments of many countries imposed quarantines and social distancing measures in 2020, many of which remain in place, to mitigate the spread of the SARS-Cov-2 virus causing the COVID-19 disease. The direct impact of COVID-19 on people infected with the virus, their families and the health care workers, as well as the impact of the mitigation measures such as quarantine, social distancing, and self-isolation on the rest of the population have contributed to a global mental health pandemic, including anxiety, depression, panic attacks, posttraumatic stress symptoms, psychosis, addiction, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and suicidality. These effects are present acutely (for example, due to fear of contamination or losing loved ones, effects of quarantine/isolation, withdrawal of community and social services, etc.) and may continue long after the pandemic is over (for example, due to bereavement, unemployment, financial losses, etc). The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered mental health problems in people without previous history of mental illness, as well as worsened the symptoms in those with pre-existing psychiatric diagnosis. Therefore, the global effort is called for to deal with this mental health pandemic secondary to COVID-19 itself to address the emergence of new as well as the exacerbation of the existing mental health issues. Conversely, this global context provides an extraordinary opportunity for studying individual differences in response to and resilience in the face of physical and psychological threat, challenge to “normal” way of life, and long-term uncertainty. In this viewpoint article we outline the particular suitability of mindfulness, its skills and mechanisms, as an approach to the prevention and management of mental health issues, as well as to the promotion of well-being and building the foundations of adaptability and flexibility in dealing with the long-term uncertainty and profound changes to the social, economic, and possibly political systems as this pandemic continues to unfold.

scholarly journals Design as a positive stimulus in a Brazilian hospital environment

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 632-645
Author(s):  
Ana von Frankenberg Berger ◽  
Andrea Capra ◽  
Aline De Rocco ◽  
Manuela Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Positive Stimulus ◽  
Hospital Environment ◽  
Community Studies ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Healthcare Staff ◽  
Porto Alegre ◽  
Mental Health Issues

The new coronavirus pandemic has put healthcare professionals, patients and family members under pressure and stress, causing mental health issues especially in the healthcare community. Studies show that a positive environment plays an important role in the well-being of individuals, impacting physical and psychological security of people. This article presents a project developed for the Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, that through graphic interventions softened the effects of combating COVID-19 for the healthcare staff and patients throughout the pandemic. The project is detailed and the discussion presents the main points considered in the process of decision making. Results show how design can play an important role in helping, not only the Covid-2019 pandemic, but also in making hospitals more hospitable places.

scholarly journals Recognising autism in healthcare

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Mary Doherty ◽  
Clair Haydon ◽  
Ian A Davidson
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Patient Experience ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Autistic Traits ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Issues ◽  
Autistic People ◽  
The Impact

Recognition of autism and the associated co-occurring physical and mental health issues has increased over recent years. However, undergraduate and postgraduate curricula take time to adapt and to impact on what is delivered in training so healthcare professionals, including doctors, report little training on these topics. Doctors need to know when someone might be autistic in order to respond to them appropriately. This article sets out the reasons why recognition of autism is important and the positive impacts of recognising and understanding autism on health outcomes, service delivery and patient experience. The negative consequences of not recognising autism or understanding the impact of autistic traits on the person are also explored. A companion article then covers how practice can be made more appropriate for autistic people to improve outcomes.

scholarly journals DELICATE STATE OF MENTAL HEALTH AND ITS IMPACT ON HEALTHCARE WORKERS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: A REVIEW

2020 ◽  
pp. 142-145
Author(s):  
Pooja Malhotra ◽  
Jashandeep Singh
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Organizational Factors ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Prevention Strategies ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Sociodemographic Variables ◽  
Disease Characteristics ◽  
Mental Health Issues

Introduction: The novel corona virus (COVID-19), a pandemic, spread to around 198 countries, and has affected millions of people globally. The associated morbidity and mortality challenged the nations in several ways. One such unaddressed area is the mental health impact on the healthcare workers and staff during this pandemic. The review aims at summarizing the evidence of mental health issues of COVID-19 pandemic on the frontline healthcare workers (HCW’s). Materials and methods: A review of the literature of the mental health issues faced by the healthcare workers during the pandemic was done. Literature search was conducted in the following databases: PubMed, Google Scholar, Embase; articles relevant to the subject, in the duration of last 8 months (Jan-2020 to Aug-2020) were reviewed. We have highlighted the most relevant data concerning the disease characteristics, personal and organizational factors that may have contributed to development of psychological changes, distress and mental health symptoms. Results: There is a generalized climate of wariness and uncertainty, particularly amongst the health professionals, which has been provoked by the disease characteristics of the current COVID-19 pandemic and various sociodemographic variables. Other factors included, rapid spread of disease, severity of symptoms, lack of knowledge of the disease, organizational factors and death among healthcare professionals. The mental health problems varied with respect to the sociodemographic variables like, gender, profession, age, place of work, social support and department of work. Evidence suggests that COVID-19 may be an independent risk factor for increase in stress, anxiety, burnout and depression amongst the healthcare professionals, which could have long-term psychological implications. Conclusion: It is of utmost importance to protect and ensure the mental health of the healthcare professionals, to address large scale health crisis. Therefore, planning of future prevention strategies is essential to promote mental well-being. Implementation to bolster response and prevention strategies by training healthcare professionals on crisis management and mental help. Evaluation of mental health status should be done by regular screening of the personnel by the multidisciplinary Psychiatry teams.

scholarly journals Psychological and social interventions for mental health issues and disorders in Southeast Asia: a systematic review

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan Maddock ◽  
Carolyn Blair ◽  
Nil Ean ◽  
Paul Best
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Systematic Review ◽  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Southeast Asian ◽  
Health Interventions ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Social Interventions ◽  
Mental Health Issues ◽  
Mental Health Interventions

Abstract Background Mental health issues and disorders are major public health challenges, particularly in low- and middle-income countries in Southeast Asia, where chronic shortages in mental health services and human resources exist. The development of effective and accessible mental health systems in Southeast Asia will require evidence based psychological and social interventions. This systematic review provides a narrative synthesis of the evidence on the effectiveness of such interventions for mental health issues and disorders in Southeast Asia. Methods A comprehensive literature search of 7 electronic databases (PsycINFO, Medline (Ovid), Cochrane library, EMBASE, SCOPUS, APA PsycArticles, and Social Care Online) was undertaken. Results Thirty two studies employing RCT designs to evaluate the effectiveness of a range of psychological and social mental health interventions on a number of different mental health outcomes were included in this review. The disparate intervention programmes reviewed were categorised as: lay delivered, yoga, aerobic and/or meditation based, cognitive behavioural therapy oriented, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing based (EMDR), health worker delivered, and hybrid programmes. The majority of the studies included in this review were of low to moderate quality due to the variability in the quality of the study design. The highest quality, and most promising evidence came from the evaluations of lay delivered interventions. This evidence demonstrates the feasibility and potential sustainability of implementing such interventions in resource constrained contexts. Conclusions The review findings indicate that a disparate array of mental health interventions can be implemented effectively in a range of Southeast Asian mental health and health settings. There is a clear need for significantly more research however, through higher quality and larger scale RCTs before it will be known more definitively, if these interventions are effective, and for whom they are most effective in different Southeast Asian contexts.

scholarly journals The changing face(book) of psychiatry: can we justify ‘following’ patients' social media activity?

2015 ◽  
Vol 39 (6) ◽  
pp. 283-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chantal Cox-George
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Social Networking Sites ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Ethical Problems ◽  
Mental Health Issues ◽  
The Social ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
The Way

SummaryIndividuals with mental health issues may post information on social networking sites that can provide an insight into their mental health status. It could be argued that doctors (and specifically psychiatrists) should understand the way in which social media is used by their patients to gain a better insight into their illnesses. However, choosing to actively monitor a patient's social media activity raises important questions about the way in which medical students, qualified clinicians and other healthcare professionals obtain information about patients. While this may be framed as a mere form of ‘collateral history-taking’, there are obvious practical and ethical problems with doing so. Here, a case is made against monitoring the social media activity of patients involved with psychiatric services.

scholarly journals Community Structure of a Mental Health Internet Support Group: Modularity in User Thread Participation

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. e20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bradley Carron-Arthur ◽  
Julia Reynolds ◽  
Kylie Bennett ◽  
Anthony Bennett ◽  
John Alastair Cunningham ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Community Structure ◽  
Support Group ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Compulsive Disorder ◽  
Mental Health Issues ◽  
Internet Support Group ◽  
Internet Support ◽  
Registration Date

Background Little is known about the community structure of mental health Internet support groups, quantitatively. A greater understanding of the factors, which lead to user interaction, is needed to explain the design information of these services and future research concerning their utility. Objective A study was conducted to determine the characteristics of users associated with the subgroup community structure of an Internet support group for mental health issues. Methods A social network analysis of the Internet support group BlueBoard (blueboard.anu.edu.au) was performed to determine the modularity of the community using the Louvain method. Demographic characteristics age, gender, residential location, type of user (consumer, carer, or other), registration date, and posting frequency in subforums (depression, generalized anxiety, social anxiety, panic disorder, bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, borderline personality disorder, eating disorders, carers, general (eg, “chit chat”), and suggestions box) of the BlueBoard users were assessed as potential predictors of the resulting subgroup structure. Results The analysis of modularity identified five main subgroups in the BlueBoard community. Registration date was found to be the largest contributor to the modularity outcome as observed by multinomial logistic regression. The addition of this variable to the final model containing all other factors improved its classification accuracy by 46.3%, that is, from 37.9% to 84.2%. Further investigation of this variable revealed that the most active and central users registered significantly earlier than the median registration time in each group. Conclusions The five subgroups resembled five generations of BlueBoard in distinct eras that transcended discussion about different mental health issues. This finding may be due to the activity of highly engaged and central users who communicate with many other users. Future research should seek to determine the generalizability of this finding and investigate the role that highly active and central users may play in the formation of this phenomenon.

scholarly journals Mobile Apps for Mental Health Issues: Meta-Review of Meta-Analyses

10.2196/17458 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. e17458 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tania Lecomte ◽  
Stéphane Potvin ◽  
Marc Corbière ◽  
Stéphane Guay ◽  
Crystal Samson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Effect Sizes ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Health Apps ◽  
Mental Health Issues ◽  
Meta Review ◽  
Meta Analyses

Background Mental health apps have great potential to help people needing support to cope with distress or specific symptoms. In fact, there is an exponential increase in the number of mental health apps available on the internet, with less than 5% being actually studied. Objective This study aimed to assess the quality of the available evidence regarding the use of mental health apps and to summarize the results obtained so far. Methods Systematic reviews and meta-analyses were searched, specifically for mobile apps on mental health issues or symptoms, and rated using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation system. Results A total of 7 meta-analyses were carefully reviewed and rated. Although some meta-analyses looked at any mental health issue and analyzed the data together, these studies were of poorer quality and did not offer strong empirical support for the apps. Studies focusing specifically on anxiety symptoms or depressive symptoms were of moderate to high quality and generally had small to medium effect sizes. Similarly, the effects of apps on stress and quality of life tended to offer small to medium effects and were of moderate to high quality. Studies looking at stand-alone apps had smaller effect sizes but better empirical quality than studies looking at apps with guidance. The studies that included follow-ups mostly found a sustained impact of the app at an 11-week follow-up. Conclusions This meta-review revealed that apps for anxiety and depression hold great promise with clear clinical advantages, either as stand-alone self-management or as adjunctive treatments. More meta-analyses and more quality studies are needed to recommend apps for other mental health issues or for specific populations.

scholarly journals Mobile Apps for Mental Health Issues: Meta-Review of Meta-Analyses (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tania Lecomte ◽  
Stéphane Potvin ◽  
Marc Corbière ◽  
Stéphane Guay ◽  
Crystal Samson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Effect Sizes ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Health Apps ◽  
Mental Health Issues ◽  
Meta Review ◽  
Meta Analyses

BACKGROUND Mental health apps have great potential to help people needing support to cope with distress or specific symptoms. In fact, there is an exponential increase in the number of mental health apps available on the internet, with less than 5% being actually studied. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to assess the quality of the available evidence regarding the use of mental health apps and to summarize the results obtained so far. METHODS Systematic reviews and meta-analyses were searched, specifically for mobile apps on mental health issues or symptoms, and rated using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation system. RESULTS A total of 7 meta-analyses were carefully reviewed and rated. Although some meta-analyses looked at any mental health issue and analyzed the data together, these studies were of poorer quality and did not offer strong empirical support for the apps. Studies focusing specifically on anxiety symptoms or depressive symptoms were of moderate to high quality and generally had small to medium effect sizes. Similarly, the effects of apps on stress and quality of life tended to offer small to medium effects and were of moderate to high quality. Studies looking at stand-alone apps had smaller effect sizes but better empirical quality than studies looking at apps with guidance. The studies that included follow-ups mostly found a sustained impact of the app at an 11-week follow-up. CONCLUSIONS This meta-review revealed that apps for anxiety and depression hold great promise with clear clinical advantages, either as stand-alone self-management or as adjunctive treatments. More meta-analyses and more quality studies are needed to recommend apps for other mental health issues or for specific populations.

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