Archives of Psychiatric Nursing

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease caused by the novel coronavirus Covid-19 is a current worldwide outbreak. The use of quarantine and isolation proved effective in containing the spread of infection. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to assess the mental health of Albanian people residing in the country and abroad during the quarantine period for the Covid-19 pandemic. DESIGN: This study was carried out from 25th March – 20th April 2020 through a web survey shared on social networks. The goal was to reach at least the minimum sample size for cross-sectional studies. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) was used to assess mental health. Chi-square (χ2) and Fisher –Exact test were used to assess the statistical significance among variables. P values ≤0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: 715 participants were included in the final analyses (78.41% females and 21.53% males). Most were residents in Albania (80.41%) and the others resided mainly in Italy (6.89%), Greece (3.51%), Germany (2.43%), Kosovo (1.62%) and the UK (1.69%). Statistical association was found between gender, country of residency and measures taken. Summary score of PHQ-9 items was 6.4662. The total score of depression classification shows that 31.82% and 12.90% of participants have respectively mild and moderate depression. Female participants showed the highest score for some items of PHQ-9, p≤0.05. CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that health care professionals should recognize and address mental health problems associated with Covid-19 especially in vulnerable groups. Acting in a timely and proper manner is essential in preventing these problems from becoming chronic.

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Data randomly selected from the outpatient treatment centre of Veresies Clinic, a private psychiatric agency in Cyprus. Participants (n = 100) are individuals with substance use disorders, who had asked for treatment and who have been advised to start individual treatment after a standardized admission assessment with the European Addiction Severity Index.

Ongoing education of experienced psychiatric nurses is imperative given the historically complex health presentations of psychiatric patients. Psychiatric patients tend to have medical co-morbidities and often do not have the financial resources for preventative health care. The hospitalization for acute psychiatric stabilization, is an opportunity for psychiatric nurses to teach and advocate for patients’ physiological and psychological health. Documentation of patients’ changes in condition and overall clinical presentation, is necessary to ensure patients’ health care needs are met. Keywords: nurses, patients, psychiatry, documentation, nursing process