The United Nations health experts have warned that mental illness crisis is looming as millions of people worldwide are surrounded by death and disease and forced into isolation, poverty and anxiety by the ravaging pandemic.
Presenting a UN report and policy guidance on COVID-19 and mental health Thursday, the Director of Mental Health Department, World Health Organisation (WHO), Ms. Devora Kestel, said: “The isolation, the fear, the uncertainty, the economic turmoil – they all cause, or could cause psychological distress.”
According to Reuters, Kestel while briefing reporters at the report presentation added that an upsurge in the number and the severity of mental illnesses were likely, advising that governments should put the issue in “front and centre of their responses.”
“The mental health and wellbeing of whole societies have been severely impacted by this crisis and are a priority to be addressed urgently,” she said.
