Telemedicine Interventions as an Attempt to Improve the Mental Health of Populations during the COVID-19 Pandemic—A Narrative Review

Abstract

Published reports indicate the need for psychological interventions and the integration of psychiatric care into crisis management plans in people with mental health issues caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. It seems crucial to identify the root causes of the health-social-economic crisis and identify potential opportunities for widely implemented psychological assistance. This narrative literature review aims to identify the types of interventions deployed as telemedicine-based mental health support and their effectiveness. The PubMed and Web of Science electronic databases were searched. From a total of 48 articles, 46 were analysed after removing duplicates. From these, thirty-seven records were excluded according to the inclusion criteria and nine (eight RCT and one cross-over) were assessed as full texts. The included publications were randomised clinical trials or cross-over studies focused on remote mental support interventions. In all studies, participants represented both sexes and had an average age range of 6–64. Studies included participants from seven countries and the overall number of participants in the included studies was 687. The content of these intervention programmes includes both established psychotherapeutic programmes, as well as new interventions. Remote support was implemented through three approaches: phone/video calls, mobile applications, and internet-based programs. The results of the included studies indicate a higher or equal efficacy of telemedicine interventions compared to traditional forms. The review also revealed a relatively wide range of targeted research groups: from children with social anxiety through to their caregivers; adolescents with neurological disorders; and from college students to adults with psychiatric or orthopaedic disorders. Analysis of the included papers found that telemedicine interventions show promising results as an attempt to improve population mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Follow-up of telemedicine mental health interventions amid COVID-19 pandemic

“…Globally, first reports indicates that suicide rates did not increase during the COVID-19 pandemic, but there was a higher lethality among 65 years old retired employment males 30 – 32 . We corroborate findings from other studies 33 that the utilization of telemedicine proves successful, with no specific complaints from users or program professionals. This underscores the effectiveness of non-face-to-face interventions, which not only maintain effectiveness but also mitigate the risk of COVID-19 transmission.…”

Global landscape of COVID-19 research: a visualization analysis of randomized clinical trials

“…Mental health strategies focus on evaluating interventions that aim to reduce the impact of the epidemic on mental health. These interventions include psychological interventions such as cognitive behavior therapy, online self-help interventions, and telepsychiatry [ 127 , 128 ]. In addition, non-pharmacological interventions such as physical exercise and social support have also been studied [ 129 ].…”

Impact of AI-Powered Solutions in Rehabilitation Process: Recent Improvements and Future Trends

“…Their clinical conditions rely on persons with acquired brain injuries on both families and/or caregivers' assistance. 24,25 This situation may be seriously deleterious for their quality of life and their social image, status, and desirability may be significantly hampered. 26,27 To tackle this issue, assistive technology, new technologies, and artificial intelligence-based programs or interventions may be envisaged.…”