Geriatric Mental Health and COVID-19: An Eye-Opener to the Situation of the Arab Countries in the Middle East and North Africa Region

Abstract

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Mental health research in the lower-middle-income countries of Africa and Asia during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review

“…Egypt is one of the worst affected African countries due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with more than 77 thousand confirmed cases and 3489 deaths ( WHO, 2020c ). Various mental health issues of the geriatric population, general population, and psychosocial support ( El-Zoghby, Soltan, & Salama, 2020 ; Hayek et al, 2020 ) were focussed on mental health research related to COVID-19. The mental health support for the vulnerable population during this pandemic falls short to meet the needs.…”

­­The Combined Outcomes of the COVID-19 Pandemic and a Collapsing Economy on Quality of Life: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Lebanon has high percentages of vulnerable populations, such as elderly, 35 and chronic diseases, [36][37][38] considered at higher risk for COVID-19 and lower QOL. 39 Reasons in this context could include panic due unreliable information for patients, 40 especially in an era of massive misinformation in the media, 41,42 added to the economic situation itself. Furthermore, the healthcare system in Lebanon is mainly private, 43 while 10.5% of our population reported not having any health coverage.…”

­­The Combined Outcomes of the COVID-19 Pandemic and a Collapsing Economy on Mental Well-Being: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Lebanon has high percentages of vulnerable populations, such as elderly, 41 and chronic diseases, [42][43][44] considered at higher risk for COVID-19 and lower MWB. 15,45 Reasons in this context could include panic due unreliable information for patients, 46 especially in an era of massive misinformation in the media, 47,48 added to the economic situation itself.…”

“…Such strategies would include measures to protect them against the COVID-19, educate them on the importance of communicating with their healthcare providers and adhering to treatments, in addition to developing strategies for telemedicine and remote consultation if the lockdown persists 60 . Speci c recommendations have already been developed in Lebanon for the geriatric population 46 and cancer patients [61][62][63] , even if their implementation could face obstacles due to the reluctance of patients to change 64 .…”