Oxford study into Covid and psychiatric disorders
Marjorie Wallace, Chief Executive of SANE, comments on the University of Oxford study published in Lancet Psychiatry that found an increased risk of psychiatric conditions amongst people who have had Covid-19:
“This study echoes SANE’s own experience. Our helpline is dealing with an increasing number of first-time callers who are being triggered into mental health problems, as well as those who are relapsing because their fear and anxiety have become intolerable.
“Startling figures from the Office for National Statistics suggest that the number of people experiencing depression has doubled from one in ten before the pandemic to one in five now. Our concern is that when people do reach out for help nothing is available – they often tell us that mental health services have ‘disappeared’.
“If the Government fails to take note of these findings and prepare sufficient skilled staff, and if necessary psychiatric beds, we will find our services not able to cope with the escalating numbers of people who may become critically unwell.”
Related articles:
Bidirectional associations between COVID-19 and psychiatric disorder – The Lancet
