&lt;p&gt;Telepsychiatry in the Arab World: A Viewpoint Before and During COVID-19&lt;/p&gt;

Hayek, Samer El; Nofal, Marwa; Abdelrahman, Doaa; Adra, Ali; Harthi, Mansour Al; Shamli, Siham Al; AlNuaimi, Nawaf; Bensid, Lynda; Cheaito, Mohamad Ali; Emberish, Alkhansa Mahdi; Larnaout, Amine; Radwan, Ahmed; Slaih, Mohammad; Kobeissy, Firas; Bizri, Maya

doi:10.2147/ndt.s277224

Cited by 28 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…On the other hand, in Lithuania, the Netherlands and Lebanon (the only participating Arab country), mental health professionals have a higher current uptake and more existing experience in delivering online consultations. While mental health problems carry a lot of stigma in Arab countries ( Househ et al, 2019 ), which could increase interest in more anonymous e-mental health contacts, mental health legislation and infrastructure (including telepsychiatry) is often still underdeveloped in these countries, including Lebanon ( El Hayek et al, 2020 ). A considerable number of Lebanese mental health professionals have received at least a portion of their training outside the Arab countries' borders, which could imply that they are more culturally “close” to the western societies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Online consultations in mental healthcare during the COVID-19 outbreak: An international survey study on professionals' motivations and perceived barriers

Witte¹,

Carlbring

Etzelmueller

et al. 2021

Internet Interventions

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Introduction While the general uptake of e-mental health interventions remained low over the past years, physical distancing and lockdown measures relating to the COVID-19 pandemic created a need and demand for online consultations in only a matter of weeks. Objective This study investigates the uptake of online consultations provided by mental health professionals during lockdown measures in the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the participating countries, with a specific focus on professionals' motivations and perceived barriers regarding online consultations. Methods An online survey on the use of online consultations was set up in March 2020. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) guided the deductive qualitative analysis of the results. Results In total, 2082 mental health professionals from Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, France, Germany, Italy, Lebanon, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden were included. The results showed a high uptake of online consultations during the COVID-19 pandemic but limited previous training on this topic undergone by mental health professionals. Most professionals reported positive experiences with online consultations, but concerns about the performance of online consultations in a mental health context (e.g., in terms of relational aspects) and practical considerations (e.g., relating to privacy and security of software) appear to be major barriers that hinder implementation. Conclusions This study provides an overview of the mental health professionals' actual needs and concerns regarding the use of online consultations in order to highlight areas of possible intervention and allow the implementation of necessary governmental, educational, and instrumental support so that online consultations can become a feasible and stable option in mental healthcare.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Online consultations in mental healthcare during the COVID-19 outbreak: An international survey study on professionals' motivations and perceived barriers

Witte¹,

Carlbring

Etzelmueller

et al. 2021

Internet Interventions

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Most clinics in the Gulf countries turned to telemedicine to enact this, via methods such as phone calls, e-mail, Zoom®, and Microsoft Teams®, as well as smartphone-based technologies such as WhatsApp® and specific health apps [64] . They used these platforms for virtual visits and consultations, medication refills, rescheduling appointments, reviewing the measurements of vital signs, and so on [65][66][67] . Prior to COVID-19, most patients of these clinics had not used telemedicine platforms, but, due to high levels of access to smartphones and other devices and the wide availability of Internet in Saudi Arabia, relatively simple telemedicine clinics could be implemented quickly and smoothly, without too much additional burden being placed on the health system [65] .…”

Section: Western Asiamentioning

confidence: 99%

The worldwide impact of telemedicine during COVID-19: current evidence and recommendations for the future

Omboni¹,

Padwal²,

Alessa³

et al. 2022

145

140

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, telemedicine has emerged worldwide as an indispensable resource to improve the surveillance of patients, curb the spread of disease, facilitate timely identification and management of ill people, but, most importantly, guarantee the continuity of care of frail patients with multiple chronic diseases. Although during COVID-19 telemedicine has thrived, and its adoption has moved forward in many countries, important gaps still remain. Major issues to be addressed to enable large scale implementation of telemedicine include: (1) establishing adequate policies to legislate telemedicine, license healthcare operators, protect patients’ privacy, and implement reimbursement plans; (2) creating and disseminating practical guidelines for the routine clinical use of telemedicine in different contexts; (3) increasing in the level of integration of telemedicine with traditional healthcare services; (4) improving healthcare professionals’ and patients’ awareness of and willingness to use telemedicine; and (5) overcoming inequalities among countries and population subgroups due to technological, infrastructural, and economic barriers. If all these requirements are met in the near future, remote management of patients will become an indispensable resource for the healthcare systems worldwide and will ultimately improve the management of patients and the quality of care.

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“…There is more dependence on telemedicine (telepsychiatry, even at the emergency department), restrictions on hospital admission, and enrolling patients into COVID-19 positive and negative units based on testing for COVID-19 status (47,48). Although the use of telepsychiatry has increased in many Arab countries after COVID-19, several barriers (relevant to patients and systems) render this service less effective for counseling and treatment (49). In the meantime, some smallto medium-sized psychiatric hospitals also refuse to receive new inpatients because of poor medical conditions, which would possibly deteriorate distress symptoms for patients with mental illness (47).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

COVID-19-Related Psychological Trauma and Psychological Distress Among Community-Dwelling Psychiatric Patients: People Struck by Depression and Sleep Disorders Endure the Greatest Burden

Ali

Alkhamees

Elhay

et al. 2022

Front. Public Health

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COVID-19 has created a general state of worry and distress, especially among vulnerable groups such as those with psychiatric diagnoses. Worldwide, psychiatric care provision has drastically suffered during the pandemic, with many patients unable to access proper care, which may have implications for increased mental health consequences in patients with psychiatric disorders (e.g., relapse and suicide). This cross-sectional study used structural equation modeling to investigate COVID-19-related trauma and distress among Arab psychiatric population during COVID-19 quarantine. Patients with pre-existing psychiatric disorders (N = 168) completed an online survey that comprised the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale 21 (DASS-21), the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), and a questionnaire on COVID-19-related attitudes/perceptions, sources of information, used protective measures, and socio-demographic information. Respondents commonly reported feeling down-hearted/blue, trouble concentrating, along with symptoms of avoidance and rumination related to the pandemic. Patients with depression and sleep disorders expressed higher COVID-19-related trauma than patients with other disorders. Perceived physical health mediated the effect of co-morbid chronic physical disorders on COVID-19 trauma, psychological distress, perceived vulnerability to COVID-19, and perceived likelihood of recovery in case of contracting COVID-19. Perceived physical health and perceived vulnerability to COVID-19 were strong direct predictors of COVID-19-related trauma and psychological distress. Staying at home negatively predicted COVID-19 trauma and exerted an indirect negative effect on psychological distress via COVID-19 trauma. COVID-19 trauma, age, and marital status directly predicted psychological distress, with COVID-19 trauma being the strongest predictor. Educational level, income, having family members working in the medical field, keeping up to date with the news on deaths/infected cases or the development of COVID-19 drugs or vaccines, satisfaction with available information on COVID-19, and using different protective measures were not associated with significant differences in COVID-19 trauma and psychological distress scores. Immuno-psychiatric interventions should be designed to target COVID-19-trauma and distress among younger single patients with perceived poor physical health, especially those diagnosed with depression and sleep disorders.

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<p>Telepsychiatry in the Arab World: A Viewpoint Before and During COVID-19</p>

Cited by 28 publications

References 49 publications

Online consultations in mental healthcare during the COVID-19 outbreak: An international survey study on professionals' motivations and perceived barriers

Online consultations in mental healthcare during the COVID-19 outbreak: An international survey study on professionals' motivations and perceived barriers

The worldwide impact of telemedicine during COVID-19: current evidence and recommendations for the future

COVID-19-Related Psychological Trauma and Psychological Distress Among Community-Dwelling Psychiatric Patients: People Struck by Depression and Sleep Disorders Endure the Greatest Burden

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