The head of WHO told about the impact of COVID-19 on the psychological state of million people

World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Tedros Adanom Ghebreyesus said that the pandemic affected the mental health of million people. Such deep effect on mental health appeared due to the introduced measures which limit social interaction, he said.

“COVID-19 affected psychological state of people in terms of the anxiety and fear it caused, as well as the alterations in mental health services,” Ghebreyesus said.

The head of the WHO noted that the before the pandemic the problem of mental state was “a forgotten issue in global health”. Today near “a billion people are living with mental disorders, three million die each year from the harmful use of alcohol, and one person in the world commits suicide every 40 seconds,” he said.

At the same time, the minority of all people have the access to qualified medical help. In low- and middle-income countries, more than 75% of people with mental and neurological disorders don’t receive any treatment at all, he said.