International Journal of Public Health (Jun 2022)

Distress and Well-Being Among Psychiatric Patients in the Aftermath of the First COVID-19 Lockdown in Israel: A Longitudinal Study

  • Ariella Grossman-Giron,
  • Ariella Grossman-Giron,
  • Dana Tzur Bitan,
  • Dana Tzur Bitan,
  • Shlomo Mendlovic,
  • Sharon Shemesh,
  • Yuval Bloch

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/ijph.2022.1604326
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 67

Abstract

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Objectives: Studies assessing the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychiatric patients have mostly focused on cross-sectional evaluations of differences in levels of distress. In this study, we aimed to assess changes in distress and well-being following the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak as compared with pre-pandemic levels, as well as potential predictors of symptomatic deterioration, among psychiatric outpatients treated in a public mental health hospital in Israel.Methods: Patients evaluated for distress and well-being before the pandemic (n = 55) were re-evaluated at the end of the first lockdown in Israel.Results: Analyses revealed a significant decrease in the patients’ sense of personal growth. Increases in distress were significantly associated with fear of COVID-19 beyond patient characteristics.Conclusion: These results suggest that the pandemic has a short-term effect on patients’ well-being, and that fear of the pandemic is associated with elevations in distress.

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