Mental health pandemic, fourth wave

Gerocast

Much is said about the so-called “new normal”, mainly due to the drop in the number of deaths and hospitalizations of Covid-19 across the country. Obviously, the enormous need to work remotely is an inevitable reality, and most companies have adopted this reality more or less, but it will certainly be at a higher level than before the pandemic. The explosive growth of telemedicine for medical services can be easily seen by the number of major health institutions in the country. This vacuum of uncertainty and the backdrop for all losses related to the pandemic can leave deep emotional scars, which provide a fertile ground for the so-called fourth wave.

Some data indicate that it is possible to divide the consequences of the pandemic into four waves. The first wave refers to the direct burden on health systems in all countries that urgently need to provide first aid to critically ill patients infected with Covid-19. The second wave is that, due to the need to reallocate funds to deal with the pandemic, resources used in other areas of health care for acute clinical illnesses have declined. The third wave is related to the impact of interruptions in medical care in various chronic diseases.

The fourth wave includes an increase in mental disorders and psychological trauma caused directly by the infection or its secondary consequences. The increase in psychiatric symptoms and mental disorders during a pandemic can occur for several reasons. Among them, we can highlight the direct role of the virus in the central nervous system, the traumatic experience related to infection or death of people close to the pandemic, the economic consequences of social or daily distancing from work or emotional relationships and, finally, the interruption of treatment due to access difficulties.