COVID-19 and Mental Health:What We Are Learning from www.mhascreening.org
August 1, 2020
The COVID-19 Pandemic: Severe
Impacts on Mental Health
• More than 260,000 people have been impacted by anxiety and depression;
• More than 42,000 people have been impacted by psychosis;
• More than 90,000 people have had thoughts of suicide or self-harm on more than half the days.
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Mental Health and COVID-19:
➢ MHA Screening reflects the experiences of a help-seeking population that accesses mental health screening through www.mhascreening.org.
➢ We do not reach the entire population; therefore our numbers are likely to underreport the actual experiences of the population.
➢ From late February thru July 263,515 people screened moderate to severe for depression or anxiety over and above what we would have expected prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
➢ From late February thru July an addition 42,851 people screened at risk for psychosis over and above what we would have expected prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
➢ Since March 1, 90,114 depression screeners reported suicidal or self-harm thinking on more than half the days.
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Mental Health and COVID-19: Thoughts of Suicide
& Self-Harm at Epidemic Levels
➢ These impacts on mental health are more pronounced in young people (<25): over 9 in 10 are screening with moderate-to-severe depression, and over 8 in 10 are screening with moderate-to-severe anxiety.
➢ “Loneliness and isolation” is cited by the greatest percent of moderate to severe depression (74%) and anxiety (65%) screeners as contributing to mental health problems “right now.” These percentages have been steady since mid-April.
➢ Despite a dramatic jump in screeners in June and July (256,057 in July versus 69,626 in April), severity continued to track equal to or higher than our pre-pandemic baselines.
➢ In July 2020, 30,519 reported thinking of suicide or self-harm on more than half of days to nearly every day, with 17,728 reporting these thoughts nearly every day.
➢ Special populations are also experiencing high anxiety and depression, including LGBTQ, caregivers, students, veterans/active duty, and trauma survivors.
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MHA Screening (www.mhascreening.org):
More than 5.5 Million Completed Screens
Depression (PHQ-9) Anxiety (GAD-7) Bipolar (MDQ)
PTSD (PC-PTSD)Youth Screen
(PSC-YR)Parent Screen
(PSC)
Alcohol and Substance Use Screen (CAGE-
AID)
Psychosis Screen (Ultra-High Risk)
(PQ-B)Eating Disorders
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MHA Screening
• Began in April 2014.
• Access to screening tools is free and anonymous at www.mhascreening.org.
• Most screeners voluntarily give de-identified demographic data.
• Screeners are young, (63% < 25 years), female (72%).
• Help-seeking population (74% positive).
Depression, Anxiety, & Psychosis: “Positive”
Numbers Increased Dramatically in May-July
7
-10000
0
10000
20000
30000
40000
50000
60000
70000
Feb Mar Apr May June July
Depression+ Anxiety+ Psychosis+
Note: Numbers represent excess moderate to severe (depression, anxiety) or at-risk (psychosis) results since February
In July, Per Day Anxiety Screenings
Increased by 420% over January
8
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1600
1800
1/1 - 1/31 2/1 - 2/29 3/1 - 3/31 4/1 - 4/30 5/1 - 5/31 6/1 - 6/30 7/1 - 7/31
In July, Per Day Depression Screenings
Increased by 520% over January
0
500
1000
1500
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3000
January February March April May June July
Depression Screenings
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June Anxiety Screeners: The Main Things
Contributing to Mental Health Problems Right Now
Reason Number of Responders Percent of Respondents
Loneliness or isolation 17637 64.74%
Past trauma 12700 46.62%
Relationship problems 11111 40.79%
Current events (news, politics, etc.) 9838 36.11%
Coronavirus 7878 28.92%
Grief or Loss 6723 24.68%
Financial Problems 6588 24.18%
Racism 2097 7.70%
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N=27,241, scoring moderate to severe 6/1-6/30, “Choose up to
3”
“Racism” added as option on 6/16
July Anxiety Screeners: The Main Things
Contributing to Mental Health Problems Right Now
Reason Number of Responders Percent of Respondents
Loneliness or isolation 19063 65.28%
Past trauma 14206 48.65%
Relationship problems 11994 41.07%
Current events (news, politics, etc.) 9009 30.85%
Coronavirus 8578 29.37%
Grief or Loss 7459 25.54%
Financial Problems 7246 24.81%
Racism 3012 10.31%
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N=29,202, scoring moderate to severe 7/1-7/31, “Choose up to 3”
June Depression Screeners: The Main Things
Contributing to Mental Health Problems Right Now
Reason Number of Responders Percent of Respondents
Loneliness or isolation 37237 73.92%
Past trauma 22653 44.97%
Relationship problems 22058 43.79%
Current events (news, politics, etc.) 14674 29.13%
Grief or loss 13366 26.53%
Coronavirus 11926 23.67%
Financial Problems 11767 23.36%
Racism 2704 5.37%
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N=50,376, scoring moderate to severe 6/1-6/30, “Choose
up to 3”
“Racism” added as option on 6/16
July Depression Screeners: The Main Things
Contributing to Mental Health Problems Right Now
Reason Number of Responders Percent of Respondents
Loneliness or isolation 43396 74.39%
Past trauma 26634 45.66%
Relationship problems 25443 43.62%
Grief or loss 15497 26.57%
Coronavirus 14389 24.67%
Current events (news, politics, etc.) 14261 24.45%
Financial Problems 13995 23.99%
Racism 4450 7.63%
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N=58,335, scoring moderate to severe 7/1-7/31, “Choose
up to 3”
Main Concerns Are Different Across
Race/EthnicityBlack or African
American screeners cite financial concerns at a
higher rate
Native American or American Indian screeners report
more past trauma
Hispanic or Latino screeners more worried about
COVID-19
Hispanic or Latino screeners cite loneliness or
isolation at highest rates
Largest increases in concern about
loneliness among Black and White
screeners
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Screeners Are Not “Worried Well”:
Depression Severity Highest In July 2020
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75.00%
76.00%
77.00%
78.00%
79.00%
80.00%
81.00%
82.00%
83.00%
84.00%
85.00%
86.00%
Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July
Depression Screeners, Percent Moderate to Severe
More Than 30,000 People Considered Self-Harm
or Suicide in June
16
16.60%17.50%
20.60%
18.30%17.48%
19.66%20.77%
13.20% 13.50%14.60% 14.10% 13.62%
14.66% 14.99%
25498
30519
0
5000
10000
15000
20000
25000
30000
35000
0.00%
5.00%
10.00%
15.00%
20.00%
25.00%
Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20
% Nearly Every Day % More Than Half the Days Total Number, Half to Nearly Every Day
Young People in July Still Disproportionately
Experiencing Depression and AnxietyPercent Moderate to Severe
17
0.00%
10.00%
20.00%
30.00%
40.00%
50.00%
60.00%
70.00%
80.00%
90.00%
100.00%
"11-17" "18-24" "25-34" "35-44" "45-54" "55-64" "65+"
Depression Anxiety
Psychosis Screening: Screeners at Risk and
Severity Up in July 2020
18
60.00%
62.00%
64.00%
66.00%
68.00%
70.00%
72.00%
74.00%
76.00%
78.00%
0
5000
10000
15000
20000
25000
Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July
Screeners At Risk Percent at Risk
Special Populations: Positive for
Depression and Anxiety
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0.00% 10.00% 20.00% 30.00% 40.00% 50.00% 60.00% 70.00% 80.00% 90.00% 100.00%
Vet/Active Duty
New/Exp Mom
Caregiver
LGBTQ+
Trauma Survivor
Student
Anxiety Depression
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For More Resources
• For MHA COVID-19 resources: https://www.mhanational.org/covid19
• For other mental health COVID-19 resources: https://psychhub.com/covid-19/
• To take a free mental health screen: https://screening.mhanational.org
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