Outbreak Investigation: Mental Health in the Time of Coronavirus (COVID-19)

About this Research Topic

Background

The world is currently in the grip of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. At the time of writing on 3 April 2020, there are over one million cases in about 200 countries worldwide. The death toll has surpassed 50000. On 30 January, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. In the strive to contain this pandemic and provide acute care for those in need, the management of associated psychiatric problems is not considered as a priority at present. But with rising numbers of cases and fatalities, prolonged quarantines, substantial restrictions on public life and economic downturn, mental health problems are likely to rise exponentially.

The goals of this Research Topic are to:
• examine the psychiatric impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on individuals with and without existing mental disorders
• explore the psychological impact of public health measures to contain the outbreak such as prolonged quarantine and restriction of public life
• collate evidence regarding mental health problems and their management from past outbreaks to equip mental health professionals to effectively deal with the COVID-19 pandemic
• to examine the relationship between COVID-19 related anxiety and somatic symptom disorder
• to map the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychiatric services internationally

Topics may include:
• Psychological and psychiatric impact of quarantine and social restriction
• Psychological and psychiatric impact of economic uncertainty
• Mental health in refugees or people living in war zones affected by COVID-19
• Impact on individuals with a severe mental disorder
• Use of internet consultations in psychiatry to minimize personal contact
• Infection control in psychiatric inpatient units
• Management of stress and burnout in front-line medical staff
• Self-medication with conventional and complementary alternative medicines
• Psychological and social impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on children and adolescents
• Social media, news and fake news
• Health anxiety, persistent somatic symptoms, somatic symptom disorder, functional disorders
• Coping with grief, stigma, and guilt

We welcome papers reporting original data from both the current COVID-19 pandemic and from past major outbreaks, deriving lessons for the current pandemic, clinical and systematic reviews and country reports.

The following Article Types will be considered:
Original Research
Review
Brief Research Report
Clinical Trial
Community Case Study
Conceptual analysis
Data Report
Hypothesis and Theory
Methods
Mini Review
Policy and Practice Reviews
Policy Brief (includes country reports)
Registered report
Technology and code
Study protocol
Systematic review

***Due to the exceptional nature of the COVID-19 situation, Frontiers is waiving all article publishing charges for COVID-19 related research.***

Keywords: COVID-19, Pandemic, Outbreak, Mental Health, Anxiety, coronavirus, WHO

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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