Covid-19 and the nation's mental health: A review of the evidence published so far (26 September 2024)

Summary

The report reviews and analyses evidence about Covid’s impact on the UK’s mental health and services. It finds that the pandemic caused a “collective trauma”, from the immediate effects of isolation, bereavement and fear, to the longer-term trauma of health care workers and the psychological legacy among children and young people of disrupted education.

Covid-19 and the nation’s mental health: A review of the evidence published so far says that people with severe mental illness were profoundly affected by the pandemic. They were more likely to be hospitalised or die of Covid-19, with more than 42,000 deaths before the age of 75 among people with a severe mental illness in the first year of the pandemic alone. The report says that this disparity stems from wider inequalities among this group, such as higher levels of poor physical health, racial inequity, and widespread poverty.

The review finds that the mental health impacts are still emerging four years on from the pandemic’s start, with mental health referrals failing to return to pre-pandemic levels. It says that the Covid-19 inquiry must examine the mental health impacts of the pandemic if it is to fully understand what happened and what we must learn for future national and international emergencies.