Health and Healthcare Systems

COVID-19: The countries reporting the highest mental health declines

Lori Hutter (R) cries with her daughter Cassie next to their burned out home in the Rancho Bernardo neighborhood of San Diego, California October 27, 2007. Risk Management Solutions, which predicts and assesses insured damages, said in a statement that the wildfires which have devastated Southern California would likely cost insurers between $900 million and $1.6 billion. REUTERS/John Gress (UNITED STATES) - GM1DWLUTSGAA

Around the world, the pandemic continues to take its toll both physically and mentally. Image: REUTERS/John Gress

Niall McCarthy
Data Journalist, Statista
  • The pandemic is having a significant impact on people's mental health.
  • From grief to social isolation, the causes are numerous.
  • In the US, a third of adults reported their mental health had suffered as a result of the pandemic.

Along with the obvious physical implications for people who contract Covid-19, the pandemic is having a devastating mental health impact on people all over the world. The grief among those who have lost loved ones, the unease at losing a job and economic security, the frustration of lockdowns, the challenges of working from home while taking care of kids along with the fear of contracting the disease have all taken their toll on mental health.

stress mental health america phycology Coronavirus china virus health healthcare who world health organization disease deaths pandemic epidemic worries concerns Health virus contagious contagion viruses diseases disease lab laboratory doctor health dr nurse medical medicine drugs vaccines vaccinations inoculations technology testing test medicinal biotechnology biotech biology chemistry physics microscope research influenza flu cold common cold bug risk symptomes respiratory china iran italy europe asia america south america north washing hands wash hands coughs sneezes spread spreading precaution precautions health warning covid 19 cov SARS 2019ncov wuhan sarscow wuhanpneumonia  pneumonia outbreak patients unhealthy fatality mortality elderly old elder age serious death deathly deadly
The impact on mental health as been widespread. Image: Statista

The Commonwealth Fund and research firm SSRS recently released a survey about the issue, focusing on the situation across ten high-income countries (no data was available for Germany for the following infographic). It found that a third of people in the United States said they experienced stress, anxiety or sadness that was difficult to cope with alone since the outbreak of Covid-19. Around a quarter of respondents in Canada, the UK, and France also said they had suffered mental health problems as a result of the pandemic.

Loading...
Loading...
Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

Sign up for free

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

Stay up to date:

SDG 03: Good Health and Well-Being

Related topics:
Health and Healthcare SystemsWellbeing and Mental Health
Share:
The Big Picture
Explore and monitor how SDG 03: Good Health and Well-Being is affecting economies, industries and global issues
A hand holding a looking glass by a lake
Crowdsource Innovation
Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale
World Economic Forum logo
Global Agenda

The Agenda Weekly

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

Subscribe today

You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.

The key health achievements of COP29, and other top health stories

Shyam Bishen

November 20, 2024

How equitable access to medicines can drive sustainable returns for investors

About us

Engage with us

  • Sign in
  • Partner with us
  • Become a member
  • Sign up for our press releases
  • Subscribe to our newsletters
  • Contact us

Quick links

Language editions

Privacy Policy & Terms of Service

Sitemap

© 2024 World Economic Forum