Perspectives of patients, family members, health professionals and the public on the impact of COVID-19 on mental health

Abstract

Background

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has seen a global surge in anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and stress.

Aims

This study aimed to describe the perspectives of patients with COVID-19, their family, health professionals, and the general public on the impact of COVID-19 on mental health.

Methods

A secondary thematic analysis was conducted using data from the COVID-19 COS project. We extracted data on the perceived causes and impact of COVID-19 on mental health from an international survey and seven online consensus workshops.

Results

We identified four themes (with subthemes in parenthesis): anxiety amidst uncertainty (always on high alert, ebb and flow of recovery); anguish of a threatened future (intense frustration of a changed normality, facing loss of livelihood, trauma of ventilation, a troubling prognosis, confronting death); bearing responsibility for transmission (fear of spreading COVID-19 in public; overwhelming guilt of infecting a loved one); and suffering in isolation (severe solitude of quarantine, sick and alone, separation exacerbating grief).

Conclusion

We found that the unpredictability of COVID-19, the fear of long-term health consequences, burden of guilt, and suffering in isolation profoundly impacted mental health. Clinical and public health interventions are needed to manage the psychological consequences arising from this pandemic.

Keywords:

• COVID-19
• SARS-CoV-2
• depression
• anxiety
• PTSD

Disclosure statement

Ivor S Douglas, MD FRCP is principal investigator of clinical and translational research studies of ARDS, sepsis and COVID-19 from NIH, Roche Pharmaceuticals and Genentech. Research grants are to his institution, Denver Health Medical Center. Pedro Povoa had received lecture fees from Orion, Pfizer and Technofage. All other authors have no conflict of interests to declare.

Additional information

Funding

The project is funded by the Flinders University and the National COVID-19 Clinical Evidence Taskforce, convened by the Australian Living Evidence Consortium, hosted by Cochrane Australia, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University supported by the Australian Government, Victorian Department of Health and Human Services, Ian Potter Foundation, Walter Cottman Endowment Fund (managed by Equity Trustees) and the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation). AT is supported by The University of Sydney Robinson Fellowship. ACM is supported by a Clinical Research Career Development Fellowship from the Wellcome Trust [WT 2055214/Z/16/Z]. AV is supported by a Jacquot Research Establishment Fellowship. The funding organizations had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript.