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For the final blog of this series, I wanted to look at some of the very negative issues that have escalated during the pandemic, but have then received more funding and created more jobs.
So, mental health is one of the biggest areas that have escalated during the pandemic. The main aspects in this being fear, loneliness, tensions with others (often families), bereavement and economic strife.
Scientists are still in the process of gathering and comparing data worldwide on this, and then monitoring how long it lingers for after the pandemic. But current data received shows that adults with symptoms of anxiety and depression rose by 9% in the UK from July2019-March2020 period to June 2020. Then in USA it rose by 31% from Jan-June2019 period to December 2020. Studies are also showing that young people, rather than older people, are more vulnerable to psychological stress. The results of these studies will inform the management of future pandemics. Although the positive is that it will hopefully not have the same impact in future pandemics, hopefully it will also increase the training, understanding and support within the mental health service in the foreseeable future too. In the UK, the government are delivering a mental health recovery plan with £50 million backing. A lot of this funding will go into the training of specialists, and the further expansion and transformation of mental health services in the community.
As mentioned earlier, young people have been seen as more vulnerable to suffer symptoms of anxiety and depression, which the 'Young Minds' charity has monitored and shared throughout the pandemic. Their latest survey with 13 - 25 year olds done between 26/01/21 to 12/02/21 (2,438 people) shows:
75% was finding this lock down harder than the previous ones, 44% of those said it was much harder.
67% believe that the pandemic will have a long-term negative impact on their mental health (this includes people that have suffered bereavement, trauma, and friendship issues, but also concerns about their education and work prospects).
Although these are very focused areas, I think that the rates affected in these areas is shocking.
Another issue that has seen a dramatic increase, and in a lot of ways can be linked to the mental health issues, is Domestic Abuse. Domestic Violence reported to the police rose by 100,000 from 2018/2019 to 2020/2021. Between April and June 2020 there was a 65% increase in calls to the National Domestic Abuse Helpline, in comparison to Jan to Mar 2020. Very specifically, in the first 3 weeks of the first lock down, there were 16 domestic abuse killings of women and children in the UK. That's 5.33 people a week (or 5 in in two weeks and 6 in 1 week, over the 3 week period). Apposed to the one very three days pre-pandemic, which is high enough at any rate. Albeit an horrific issue and quite terrifying increase in domestic abuse, and murder, the government have acknowledged this, and put additional funding into the area. So there is currently a high number of vacancies in these support services, and the training that comes with it, for these staff members.
It would be difficult to look at the affects on all areas of health during the pandemic, because it is so vast. However, there has been a 32% increase in nursing course applications during the pandemic, in the UK. On the flip side of that positive, 2 in 5 critical care workers are showing symptoms of PTSD, which is double the amount of Military veterans suffering PTSD after being in recent combat. Again going back to mental health issues, so could this in fact be much bigger than we currently understand.
Let's hope that the overall positive is that the understanding, knowledge and treatment of mental health issues continues to rise, and we start to see declines that we have never seen before. #staysafe