Psychological helpline in response to the COVID‐19 pandemic in the Dominican Republic

Lovera, Angelina Sosa; Ureña, Ana Jacqueline; Arias, J. M. C.; Rodríguez, Amarilis Araujo; Canario, Julio Arturo

doi:10.1002/capr.12482

Cited by 4 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…As Table 1 shows 18 Studies were undertaken in the Asia (India [ 36 – 43 ], China [ 30 , 44 – 47 ], Qatar [ 48 , 49 ], Bangladesh [ 50 ], Indonesia [ 51 ], Nepal [ 52 ]), 11 in the North America (United States [ 17 , 20 , 29 , 31 , 53 – 58 ], Dominican Republic [ 59 ]), 10 in the Europe (Austria [ 60 ], France [ 61 ], United Kingdom (UK) [ 62 , 63 ], Slovenia [ 64 ], German [ 65 ], Ireland [ 66 ], Poland [ 16 ], Serbia [ 67 ], Spain [ 68 ]), 3 in Africa (Tunisia [ 69 ], Egypt [ 70 ], Uganda [ 71 ]), and 1 in South America (Bolivia [ 22 ]). Among them, 11 studies were published in 2020, 11 in 2021, 9 in 2022, and 12 in 2023, and a summary of them is presented in Table 1 .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Patients had a very positive response regarding this service. 31 Sosa Lovera et al, 2022 [ 59 ] Dominican Republic Describing the development, implementation and evaluation of Covid-19 helpline service in psychological first aid Quantitative UASD Covid-19 helpline University of Santo Domingo (UASD)/ Public March to July 2020/ Monday to Wednesday, from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Psychological first aid Psychological issues, Covid-19 queries, family problems More than 80% of the users felt that psychologists paid a lot of attention and interest. 81% of the respondents considered the given recommendations as useful, and 79% noted that their symptoms improved after the telephone intervention.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to the finding, most of the studies aimed to describe a Covid-19 hotline/helpline/call center [ 17 , 20 , 29 , 31 , 40 , 44 , 49 , 52 , 56 , 58 – 65 , 69 ], analyze the calls [ 16 , 20 , 22 , 29 , 30 , 37 – 43 , 45 – 47 , 49 – 52 , 54 , 55 , 57 – 68 , 71 ] and the demographic characteristics of the callers [ 16 , 22 , 29 , 30 , 37 , 38 , 40 , 41 , 43 , 45 , 46 , 48 – 50 , 54 , 58 – 60 , 65 , 68 , 70 ], examine the callers’ feedback on the hotline/helpline/call center [ 30 , 31 , 36 – 38 , 52 , 59 , 60 , 62 , 69 , 70 ], and assess hotline/helpline/call center volunteers’ experiences [ 53 , 66 , 71 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…About half of the hotlines/helplines/call centers ( n = 22) [ 29 – 31 , 37 , 41 – 45 , 47 , 49 , 51 , 54 – 56 , 60 – 62 , 64 , 65 , 70 , 71 ] were active seven days a week. The access time for other hotlines/helplines/call centers were different and included six days a week [ 48 ], five days a week [ 16 , 58 , 63 , 66 , 68 ], working days and Saturday [ 67 ], Monday to Wednesday [ 59 ], (seven days a week, then Monday to Saturday, then Monday to Friday) [ 20 ] and the access time was not reported in 12 articles [ 17 , 22 , 36 , 38 – 40 , 46 , 50 , 52 , 53 , 57 , 69 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Covid-19 hotlines, helplines and call centers: a systematic review of characteristics, challenges and lessons learned

Eslami Jahromi,

Ayatollahi,

Ebrazeh

2024

BMC Public Health

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Background During the Covid-19 pandemic, a number of hotlines/helplines/call centers was implemented to provide remote services and support public health. The objective of this study was to investigate the characteristics, challenges and lessons learned of implementing Covid-19 hotlines/helplines/call centers during the pandemic. Methods PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, the Cochrane Library, IEEE Xplore, and ProQuest databases as well as Google Scholar were searched between 1st January 2020 and 31st December 2023 to retrieve relevant articles published in English. The quality and risk of bias of the studies were assessed using the Appraisal tool for Cross-Sectional Studies (AXIS), the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT), and Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) Checklist. Results In total, 43 out of 1440 articles were included in this study. About half of the hotlines/helplines/call centers were launched in March 2020 (n = 19). Providing psychological support (n = 23), reliable information about Covid-19 (n = 10), healthcare advices about Covid-19 (n = 8), and triage (n = 7) were the most common purposes of implementing these services. The most common challenges included a lack of physical examination, unavailability of hotlines/helplines/call centers at the point of need, and delay in updating Covid-19 information. The most common lessons learned were employing qualified staff, providing proper training, and getting feedback from the callers and operators. Conclusion According to the results, most of the Covid-19 hotlines/helplines/call centers were launched in the early months of the pandemic, and about half of them were active seven days a week. Most of the operators were mental health providers and clinicians. The findings show the importance of continuous psychological support during crises, particularly when adequate information about the situation is not available. The challenges experienced by the callers and operators as well as the lessons learned by the service providers also need to be considered for future crises to increase the effectiveness of similar services.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Covid-19 hotlines, helplines and call centers: a systematic review of characteristics, challenges and lessons learned

Eslami Jahromi,

Ayatollahi,

Ebrazeh

2024

BMC Public Health

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“…Of the 65 studies, 3 (4.6%; participants: 886/67,884, 1.3%) reported using hotlines and telephone calls to deliver mental health services during the COVID-19 pandemic [ 36 , 47 , 65 ]. In 2 studies conducted in high-income countries, an average of 5.73 (SD 3.22) calls per day was reported (n=1).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Usability, Feasibility, Acceptability, and Efficacy of Digital Mental Health Services in the COVID-19 Pandemic: Scoping Review, Systematic Review, and Meta-analysis

Zhong¹,

Yang²,

Pan³

et al. 2023

JMIR Public Health Surveill

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Background After the rapid spread of the novel SARS-CoV-2, the short-term and long-term mental health impacts of the pandemic on the public, in particular on susceptible individuals, have been reported worldwide. Although digital mental health services expand accessibility while removing many barriers to in-person therapy, their usability, feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy require continued monitoring during the initial phase of the pandemic and its aftermath. Objective In this study, we aimed to understand what mental health services are offered, whether they are practical or acceptable, and to what extent digital mental health services are effective in response to the COVID-19 pandemic across high-income and low- and middle-income countries. Methods This study followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines and the PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guideline. We implemented searches in PubMed (MEDLINE), Embase, PsycINFO, and Cochrane databases for studies that were published between December 2019 and November 2021 and that involved the use of digital mental health services. Two review authors screened, assessed, and extracted studies independently. The protocol was registered on the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews. Results This review identified 7506 articles through database searching. In total, 65 (0.9%) studies from 18 countries with 67,884 participants were eligible for the scoping review. Of the 65 studies, 16 (24.6%) were included in the meta-analysis. A total of 15 (23.1%) studies measured the usability; 31 (47.7%) studies evaluated the feasibility; 29 (44.6%) studies assessed the acceptability; and 51 (78.5%) studies assessed the efficacy. Web-based programs (21/65, 32.3%), videoconferencing platforms (16/65, 24.6%), smartphone apps (14/65, 21.5%), and SMS text messaging (5/65, 7.7%) were the main techniques. Psychotherapy (44/65, 67.7%) followed by psychoeducation (6/65, 9.2%) and psychological support (5/65, 7.7%) were commonly used. The results of the meta-analysis showed that digital mental health interventions were associated with a small reduction in depressive symptoms (standardized mean difference=−0.49; 95% CI −0.74 to −0.24; P<.001) and a moderate reduction in anxiety symptoms (standardized mean difference=−0.66; 95% CI −1.23 to −1.0; P=.02) significantly. Conclusions The findings suggest that digital mental health interventions may be practical and helpful for the general population, at-risk individuals, and patients with preexisting mental disorders across high-income and middle-income countries. An expanded research agenda is needed to apply different strategies for addressing diverse psychological needs and develop integrated mental health services in the post–COVID-19 era. Trial Registration PROSPERO CRD42022307695; https://tinyurl.com/2jcuwjym

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Psychological helpline in response to the COVID‐19 pandemic in the Dominican Republic

Lovera

Ureña

Arias

et al. 2021

Couns and Psychother Res

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The global health emergency due to COVID‐19 is a disruptive event that has had various effects on mental health. Given this emergency, the Dominican Republic intervened to mitigate the negative impact of the pandemic, considering the physical isolation decreed in the country. In this context, the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo and the School of Psychology designed the UASD COVID‐19 Psychological Helpline . The objective of this article is to describe the development, implementation and evaluation of a programme of psychological first aid. The programme aimed to attenuate the impact of morbidity and mortality due to mental health issues associated with the COVID‐19 pandemic through mobile technology. There were 62 psychologists involved and trained to provide care, and a protocol was developed, implemented, monitored and evaluated. Over the course of four months, the programme assisted 497 people. The average age of the participants was 32 years, and 73% were women. The reasons for contacting the helpline included anxiety, stress, depression, domestic violence, suicidal behaviours and other behavioural problems. Following the intervention, most users reported feeling satisfied and having improved emotions. The first psychological aid in the country developed through telephone and chat messaging was an optimal resource since face‐to‐face interaction was not possible. It also reached more people and reduced the attention gap.

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Psychological helpline in response to the COVID‐19 pandemic in the Dominican Republic

Cited by 4 publications

References 8 publications

Covid-19 hotlines, helplines and call centers: a systematic review of characteristics, challenges and lessons learned

Covid-19 hotlines, helplines and call centers: a systematic review of characteristics, challenges and lessons learned

The Usability, Feasibility, Acceptability, and Efficacy of Digital Mental Health Services in the COVID-19 Pandemic: Scoping Review, Systematic Review, and Meta-analysis

Psychological helpline in response to the COVID‐19 pandemic in the Dominican Republic

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