LESSONS FROM THE FIRST COVID WAVE AND STRAIN - A STUDY OF PSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS IN THE PANDEMIC - FACTORS ASSOCIATED AND PREVENTIVE STRATEGIES
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected people worldwide. Desperate times (SARS COV-2 being a novel virus) called in for desperate measures in that right from its containment strategies to failed treatment trials have had various ramications affecting various spheres of our lives. It has already been established that the pandemic has taken a toll on mental health, cutting across all strata of society. However, apart from the pandemic in it itself as a causative factor, there are various other factors contributing to the increase in the mental health burden; some of which are modiable. An in-depth understanding of these modiable risk factors is the need of the hour, so that policies and guidelines can be framed accordingly to salvage what can be; of the mental health of the population at large. Understanding these modiable risk factors are lessons learned which will help us mitigate the mental health morbidity during the subsequent waves of the Pandemic. Aim: To study the prevalence and factors associated with the psychiatric morbidity in the general population during the COVID - 19 pandemic. Methods: The data was collected by snowball sampling using an online form to collect the demographic and clinical variables with the DASS - 21 scale appended. Conclusion: The prevalence of depression and anxiety was found to be 25.3 % and 26.2 % respectively. The signicant factors associated with psychiatric morbidity ranged across the psychological biological and social domains, some non-modiable whilst others modiable risk factors. The modiable factors identied were substance use, past history of psychiatric illness, chronic physical illness, increased screen time use, watching news (online) about the pandemic, working hours, disruption of a daily routine and a change in the lifestyle of people