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Needs, gaps and opportunities for standard and e-mental health care among at-risk populations in the Asia Pacific in the context of COVID-19: a rapid scoping review

Murphy JK 1 , Khan A 2 , Sun Q 3 , Minas H 4 , Hatcher S 5 , Ng CH 6 Show all authors , Withers M 7 , Greenshaw A 8 , Michalak EE 9 , Chakraborty PA 10 , Sandanasamy KS 11 , Ibrahim N 11 , Ravindran A 12 , Chen J 13 , Nguyen VC 14 , Lam RW 15

Affiliations 

  • 1 Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine; APEC Digital Hub for Mental Health, University of British Columbia, 2255 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 2A1, Canada. Jill.murphy@ubc.ca
  • 2 Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, 2255 Westbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 2A1, Canada
  • 3 Sol Price School of Public Policy, University of Southern California, 650 Childs Way, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, USA
  • 4 Global and Cultural Mental Health, Level 4, 207 Bouverie Street, Melbourne, Australia
  • 5 Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Roger Guindon Hall, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON, K1H 8M5, Canada
  • 6 Healthscope Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, 3010, Australia
  • 7 USC Keck School of Medicine, USC Institute on Inequalities in Global Health, Los Angeles, USA
  • 8 Department of Psychiatry, Scientific Director, APEC Digital Hub for Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, 4-142M Katz Group Centre for Pharmacy and Health Research, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, T6G 2B7, Canada
  • 9 APEC Digital Hub for Mental Health, University of British Columbia, 420-5950 University Boulevard, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada
  • 10 School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, 2206 East Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada
  • 11 Mental Health, Substance Abuse and Violence Injury Prevention, Non-Communicable Disease Section, Disease Control Division, Ministry of Health, Level 2, Block E3, Putrajaya, Malaysia
  • 12 Global Mental Health Affairs & The Office of Fellowship Training, Department of Psychiatry, Graduate Faculty, Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
  • 13 Office for Clinical Research Center, Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 600 South Wan Ping Rd, Xuhui District, Shanghai, China
  • 14 Institute of Population, Health and Development, ICON4 Tower, 243a Đường La Thành, Láng Thượng, Đống Đa, Hà Nội, 117222, Vietnam
  • 15 Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
Int J Equity Health, 2021 07 12;20(1):161.
PMID: 34253198 DOI: 10.1186/s12939-021-01484-5

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic is expected to have profound mental health impact, including in the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) region. Some populations might be at higher risk of experiencing negative mental health impacts and may encounter increased barriers to accessing mental health care. The pandemic and related restrictions have led to changes in care delivery, including a rapid shift to the use of e-mental health and digital technologies. It is therefore essential to consider needs and opportunities for equitable mental health care delivery to the most at-risk populations. This rapid scoping review: 1) identifies populations in the APEC region that are at higher risk of the negative mental health impacts of COVID-19, 2) identifies needs and gaps in access to standard and e-mental health care among these populations, and 3) explores the potential of e-mental health to address these needs.

METHODS: We conducted a rapid scoping review following the PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). We searched Medline, Embase and PsychInfo databases and Google Scholar using a search strategy developed in consultation with a biomedical librarian. We included records related to mental health or psychosocial risk factors and COVID-19 among at-risk groups; that referred to one or more APEC member economies or had a global, thus generalizable, scope; English language papers, and papers with full text available.

RESULTS: A total of 132 records published between December 2019 and August 2020 were included in the final analysis. Several priority at-risk populations, risk factors, challenges and recommendations for standard and e-mental health care were identified. Results demonstrate that e-mental health care can be a viable option for care delivery but that specific accessibility and acceptability considerations must be considered. Options for in-person, hybrid or "low-tech" care must also remain available.

CONCLUSIONS: The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the urgent need for equitable standard and e-mental health care. It has also highlighted the persistent social and structural inequities that contribute to poor mental health. The APEC region is vast and diverse; findings from the region can guide policy and practice in the delivery of equitable mental health care in the region and beyond.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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