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The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Outbreak and Mental HealthCurrent Risks and Recommended Actions

Educational Objective
To understand how how the COVID-19 outbreak is affecting mental health
1 Credit CME

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has rapidly spread, originating in Wuhan province, China, in late 2019 and making its way around the world in a matter of months. The outbreak is overwhelming intensive care units and health care capacity. According to the World Health Organization, as of May 20, 2020, there are 4 761 559 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 317 529 COVID-19-related deaths across 216 countries, areas, and territories.1 To cope with the rapid spread of the outbreak, governments have implemented swift, wide-ranging public health emergency measures that include social restrictions and quarantines. Among these are daily updates to travel bans (nationally and internationally), stay-at-home orders for nonessential workers, and the shutdown of all nonessential businesses. These steps to mitigate the spread of the virus influence the lives of billions across the globe. Since the start of the outbreak, there has been widespread stigma and rejection of individuals living in or coming from affected communities, individuals with underlying illnesses, the elderly population, and first responders. While the physical risk (eg, pneumonia, respiratory breakdown) is getting the most scientific and clinical attention, emerging data suggest that this outbreak presents substantial risk for widespread mental health problems and psychological fear-related responses.

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Article Information

Corresponding Author: Yuval Neria, PhD, New York State Psychiatric Institute, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Unit 69, 1051 Riverside Dr, New York, NY 10032 (ny126@cumc.columbia.edu).

Published Online: June 24, 2020. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2020.1730

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: Dr Neria has received grants from the National Institute of Mental Health and nonfinancial support from New York State Psychiatric Institute. No other disclosures were reported.

References
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World Health Organization. WHO coronavirus disease (COVID-19) dashboard. Accessed May 20, 2020. https://covid19.who.int/
2.
Shultz  JM , Baingana  F , Neria  Y .  The 2014 Ebola outbreak and mental health: current status and recommended response.   JAMA. 2015;313(6):567-568. doi:10.1001/jama.2014.17934PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref
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Kamara  S , Walder  A , Duncan  J , Kabbedijk  A , Hughes  P , Muana  A .  Mental health care during the Ebola virus disease outbreak in Sierra Leone.   Bull World Health Organ. 2017;95(12):842-847. doi:10.2471/BLT.16.190470PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref
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Shultz  JM , Cooper  JL , Baingana  F ,  et al.  The role of fear-related behaviors in the 2013-2016 West Africa Ebola virus disease outbreak.   Curr Psychiatry Rep. 2016;18(11):104. doi:10.1007/s11920-016-0741-yPubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref
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Cénat  JM , Mukunzi  JN , Noorishad  PG , Rousseau  C , Derivois  D , Bukaka  J .  A systematic review of mental health programs among populations affected by the Ebola virus disease.   J Psychosom Res. 2020;131:109966. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2020.109966PubMedGoogle Scholar
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Merchant  RM , Lurie  N .  Social media and emergency preparedness in response to novel coronavirus.   JAMA. Published online March 23, 2020. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.4469PubMedGoogle Scholar
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Neria  Y , Sullivan  GM .  Understanding the mental health effects of indirect exposure to mass trauma through the media.   JAMA. 2011;306(12):1374-1375. doi:10.1001/jama.2011.1358PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref
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Gao  J , Zheng  P , Jia  Y ,  et al.  Mental health problems and social media exposure during COVID-19 outbreak.   PLoS One. 2020;15(4):e0231924. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0231924PubMedGoogle Scholar
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US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Coping with stress. Accessed May 20, 2020. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/managing-stress-anxiety.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https
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Thornicroft  G , Mehta  N , Clement  S ,  et al.  Evidence for effective interventions to reduce mental-health-related stigma and discrimination.   Lancet. 2016;387(10023):1123-1132. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(15)00298-6PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref
AMA CME Accreditation Information

Credit Designation Statement: The American Medical Association designates this Journal-based CME activity activity for a maximum of 1.00  AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to:

  • 1.00 Medical Knowledge MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program;;
  • 1.00 Self-Assessment points in the American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery’s (ABOHNS) Continuing Certification program;
  • 1.00 MOC points in the American Board of Pediatrics’ (ABP) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program;
  • 1.00 Lifelong Learning points in the American Board of Pathology’s (ABPath) Continuing Certification program; and
  • 1.00 credit toward the CME [and Self-Assessment requirements] of the American Board of Surgery’s Continuous Certification program

It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting MOC credit.

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