Coronavirus pandemic may bring ‘major mental health crisis’, UN says

Psychological distress is ‘widespread’ amid physical isolation, fear of infection, dying or losing loved ones, and anxiety over economic turmoil

United Nations chief Antonio Guterres calls for urgent action to ‘help and stand by’ those most at risk

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The UN warned that frontline health care workers are among those most at risk of psychological distress during the pandemic. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 11:00pm, 14 May 2020Updated: 5:52am, 15 May 2020

The Covid-19 pandemic has the potential to become a global mental health crisis, United Nations experts have warned, with many people under severe psychological strain.

“Psychological distress in populations is widespread … A long-term upsurge in the number and severity of mental health problems is likely,” the UN said in a policy brief on Wednesday. The brief said the pandemic carried “the seeds of a major mental health crisis”, and many people were distressed by the physical isolation caused by social distancing, and fear of infection, dying or losing loved ones.

Nearly 300,000 people have died and over 4.3 million have been infected worldwide since the coronavirus was first reported in China late last year. Anxiety about economic turmoil, and the potential loss of income and livelihoods was also affecting millions of people around the world.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called for urgent action to address the looming crisis.

“Those most at risk are frontline health care workers, older people, adolescents and young people, those with pre-existing mental health conditions and those caught up in conflict and crisis,” Guterres said in a video message launching the brief. “We must help them and stand by them.”

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called for urgent action. Photo: AFP