These days we are witnessing (or protagonists) of a pandemic of a new virus that has been called SARS-CoV-2 The media is reporting on the physical and behavioral implications in different infected countries.
All of Italy is in quarantine. In Spain, schools and nursing homes have been closed, and the population is recommended to stay at home. We know that it is not a deadly virus, except for some specific population groups; that the symptoms are similar to those of the flu; that affects the elderly more; and that there is no vaccine. They talk about work-life balance, the economic impact and the number of infected people in each part of the planet.
But, what about the psychological impact? Are there mental health implications caused by the virus?
Covid19 does not alter people’s mental health; But studies carried out following the 2003 SARS epidemic indicate that quarantine and collective psychosis do produce psychological alterations. 20% of those infected by this virus were healthcare personnel.
A study was conducted with all types of healthcare workers in Beijing during the three years following the emergence of SARS in 2003. These people had either been in a hospital considered high risk, or had been quarantined, or had been victims of the death of a family member due to the virus. 10% were found to have suffered high levels of post-traumatic stress (PTSD) and; within this group 40% were still suffering from PTSD 3 years later.
Another study was carried out with health workers in Toronto during the 2003 crisis, when the situation was critical, as several hospitals had been closed due to a lack of employees due to being infected and being in quarantine. It turned out that 29% of workers scored high for emotional distress, double the rate of the general adult population in the country the previous year.
These findings are consistent with studies on SARS in Taiwan, where more than 75% of employees experienced psychiatric problems (Dr. Mian-Yoon Chong, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. 2004). In Singapore, more than 21% of employees presented psychiatric disorders
Within the general population, 40% of the sample of a research carried out in Hong Kong with survivors suffered from an active psychiatric illness. The most common were depression, chronic fatigue, and obsessive-compulsive disorder
In most of the investigations, suffering from a psychological alteration such as PTSD was directly mediated by the perception of risk of death and the belief of stigmatization (for working as healthcare personnel) among other things. This means that we can avoid developing psychiatric problems to some extent if we follow a series of professional recommendations to protect our mental health.
Recommendations to maintain emotional balance in the face of coronavirus
The Official College of Psychologists of Madrid has published a series of recommendations to protect our mental health aimed at those non-infected, vulnerable non-infected and infected people by Covid19.
Among the recommended guidelines are:
Other recommendations may be:
On the other hand, there are people who are not taking action; hence It is also recommended not to trivialize the situation, more in the case of risk groups; Take care and be prudent.
