PANDEMIC POPULATION MENTAL HEALTH: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

ABSTRACT

Background: The challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic have dominated Australian healthcare. Counter-intuitively, despite baseline workforce, infrastructure and access problems, population mental health and mental health services have weathered the first two years of the pandemic. However, there remain especially vulnerable sub-populations. Objectives: To provide a clinical update for psychiatrists and trainees on specific aspects of population mental health and mental health service performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: We review the relevant research and policy data. Conclusions: COVID-19 pandemic population mental health policy research and analysis is essential to improve clinical care and will be needed for future pandemics. The establishment of clinical registries for population mental health data can help guide future pandemic mental health policy, planning and intervention.