AUTHOR=Lentoor Antonio G. , Maepa Mokoena Patronella 

TITLE=Psychosocial Aspects During the First Wave of COVID-19 Infection in South Africa

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychiatry

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.663758

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2021.663758

ISSN=1664-0640

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Background:</bold> In South Africa, as in many countries, the nationwide spread of COVID-19 caused a public health emergency that resulted in the government implementing necessary restrictive measures such as the nationwide lockdown as a way of containing the pandemic. Such restrictive measure, while necessary, can disrupt many aspects of people's lives resulting in unprecedented psychosocial distress.</p><p><bold>Aim:</bold> The present study aims to describe the psychosocial health and situational factors associated with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in South Africa during the first wave of infection.</p><p><bold>Methods:</bold> This cross-sectional survey, recruited a total of 203 participants through convenience sampling via online platforms—WhatsApp, Facebook, emails, etc.—during COVID-19 lockdown in the country. Through the snowball technique, participants from across South Africa completed the online survey that assessed socio-demographic information, risk perception, history of mental health, COVID-19-related stress, and fears during the lockdown (first wave).</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> The majority of the participants who completed the survey were young, Black African, and female. Participants reported feelings of stress and anxiety (61.2%); stress about finances (39.5%); and feelings of sadness, anger, and/or frustration (31.6%) during the lockdown. Females compared to males were more likely to perceive COVID-19 as a risk to their household, <inline-formula><mml:math id="M1" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow><mml:msubsup><mml:mi>X</mml:mi><mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>20</mml:mn><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:mrow><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:msubsup></mml:mrow></mml:math></inline-formula> = 45,844, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001 and community, <inline-formula><mml:math id="M2" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow><mml:msubsup><mml:mi>X</mml:mi><mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>20</mml:mn><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:mrow><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:msubsup></mml:mrow></mml:math></inline-formula> = 40,047, <italic>p</italic> = 0.005. COVID-19 differentially impacted the mental health of participants with and without mental health diagnosis, <inline-formula><mml:math id="M3" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow><mml:msubsup><mml:mi>X</mml:mi><mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>4</mml:mn><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:mrow><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:msubsup></mml:mrow></mml:math></inline-formula> = 16.596, <italic>p</italic> = 0.002. Participants with a prior mental health diagnosis reported significant extra stress during lockdown (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.05).</p><p><bold>Conclusion:</bold> The findings may be of significance to assist in the development of targeted psychosocial interventions to help people during and after the pandemic.</p>