According to a recent survey by the World Health Organization (WHO), the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted critical health services in maximum countries of the world. Meanwhile, mental health services are rapidly increasing.
The survey was conducted in more than 130 countries from June to August. About 35 percent have reported disruption in the emergency intervention. It includes those people experiencing prolonged seizures, severe substance use withdrawal syndromes, and delirium.
Also, about 30 percent reported disruptions in access to medications for mental, neurological and disorders use of substances.
Apart from emergency treatments, countries also reported widespread disruption of many kinds of critical mental health services.
Meanwhile, 60 percent has reported disruptions to mental health services for vulnerable people. this includes children, adolescents, older adults, and women. Counseling and psychotherapy have also been affected by about 67 percent. As many as 65 percent have been reported critical harm to reduction services.
Even workplace and school mental health services have been severely affected. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) survey, about 35 percent have reported atleast partial disruptions of services during the pandemic.
According to Rajesh Sagar, professor of Psychiatry of AIIMS, the initial few weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic were worse when the regular OPDs had to be shut. More people were finding it difficult to gain access to doctors. Some were not even able to procure medicines at earliest.
The problem was worse for people not living in metros. The elderly and children were also adversely affected.
The survey by WHO provides the first global data showing the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on access to mental health services. This underscores the urgent need for an increase in funding in the medical area.
Before the pandemic, the surveyed countries were spending less than 2 percent of their National Health budget on mental health. Now the countries are struggling to meet their population’s needs.
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