Using Peer Support to Strengthen Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Review

doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2021.714181

Review

. 2021 Jul 12:12:714181.

doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.714181. eCollection 2021.

Using Peer Support to Strengthen Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Review

Rahul Suresh^{1

2}, Armaghan Alam³, Zoe Karkossa²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute, Montreal, QC, Canada.
² Peer Support Centre, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
³ Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

PMID: 34322045
PMCID: PMC8310946
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.714181

Review

Using Peer Support to Strengthen Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Review

Rahul Suresh et al. Front Psychiatry. 2021.

. 2021 Jul 12:12:714181.

doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.714181. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Rahul Suresh^{1

2}, Armaghan Alam³, Zoe Karkossa²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute, Montreal, QC, Canada.
² Peer Support Centre, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
³ Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

PMID: 34322045
PMCID: PMC8310946
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.714181

Abstract

Background: The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has had a significant impact on society's overall mental health. Measures such as mandated lockdowns and physical distancing have contributed to higher levels of anxiety, depression, and other metrics indicating worsening mental health. Peer support, which is peer-to-peer provided social and emotional support, is an underutilized and effective mental health resource that can potentially be used to ameliorate mental health during these times. Objective: This review aims to summarize the toll that this pandemic has had on society's mental health as found in peer-reviewed literature from October 2019 to March 2021, as well as suggest the utility of peer support to address these needs. Methods: References for this review were chosen through searches of PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar for articles published between October 2019 and March 2021 that used the terms: "coronavirus," "COVID-19," "mental health," "anxiety," "depression," "isolation," "mental health resources," "peer support," "online mental health resources," and "healthcare workers." Articles resulting from these searches and relevant references cited in those articles were reviewed. Articles published in English, French and Italian were included. Results: This pandemic has ubiquitously worsened the mental health of populations across the world. Peer support has been demonstrated to yield generally positive effects on the mental health of a wide variety of recipients, and it can be provided through numerous accessible mediums. Conclusions: Peer support can overall be beneficial for improving mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic and may be an effective tool should similar events arise in the future, although the presence of a few conflicting studies suggests the need for additional research.

Keywords: COVID-19; coronavirus pandemic; distress; healthcare workers; isolation; lockdown; mental health; peer support.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

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References

1. Vindegaard N, Benros ME. COVID-19 pandemic and mental health consequences: systematic review of the current evidence. Brain Behav Immun. (2020) 89:531–42. 10.1016/j.bbi.2020.05.048 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. Torales J, O'Higgins M, Castaldelli-Maia JM, Ventriglio A. The outbreak of COVID-19 coronavirus and its impact on global mental health. Int J Soc Psychiatry. (2020) 66:317–20. 10.1177/0020764020915212 - DOI - PubMed
1. Loades ME, Chatburn E, Higson-Sweeney N, Reynolds S, Shafran R, Brigden A, et al. . Rapid systematic review: the impact of social isolation and loneliness on the mental health of children and adolescents in the context of COVID-19. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. (2020) 59:1218–39.e3. 10.1016/j.jaac.2020.05.009 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. Eisenberg D, Golberstein E, Gollust SE. Help-seeking and access to mental health care in a university student population. Med Care. (2007) 45:594–601. 10.1097/MLR.0b013e31803bb4c1 - DOI - PubMed
1. Eisenberg D, Hunt J, Speer N, Zivin K. Mental health service utilization among college students in the United States. J Nerv Ment Dis. (2011) 199:301–8. 10.1097/NMD.0b013e3182175123 - DOI - PubMed

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[1] Vindegaard N, Benros ME. COVID-19 pandemic and mental health consequences: systematic review of the current evidence. Brain Behav Immun. (2020) 89:531–42. 10.1016/j.bbi.2020.05.048 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[2] Vindegaard N, Benros ME. COVID-19 pandemic and mental health consequences: systematic review of the current evidence. Brain Behav Immun. (2020) 89:531–42. 10.1016/j.bbi.2020.05.048 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[3] Torales J, O'Higgins M, Castaldelli-Maia JM, Ventriglio A. The outbreak of COVID-19 coronavirus and its impact on global mental health. Int J Soc Psychiatry. (2020) 66:317–20. 10.1177/0020764020915212 - DOI - PubMed

[4] Torales J, O'Higgins M, Castaldelli-Maia JM, Ventriglio A. The outbreak of COVID-19 coronavirus and its impact on global mental health. Int J Soc Psychiatry. (2020) 66:317–20. 10.1177/0020764020915212 - DOI - PubMed

[5] Loades ME, Chatburn E, Higson-Sweeney N, Reynolds S, Shafran R, Brigden A, et al. . Rapid systematic review: the impact of social isolation and loneliness on the mental health of children and adolescents in the context of COVID-19. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. (2020) 59:1218–39.e3. 10.1016/j.jaac.2020.05.009 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[6] Loades ME, Chatburn E, Higson-Sweeney N, Reynolds S, Shafran R, Brigden A, et al. . Rapid systematic review: the impact of social isolation and loneliness on the mental health of children and adolescents in the context of COVID-19. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. (2020) 59:1218–39.e3. 10.1016/j.jaac.2020.05.009 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[7] Eisenberg D, Golberstein E, Gollust SE. Help-seeking and access to mental health care in a university student population. Med Care. (2007) 45:594–601. 10.1097/MLR.0b013e31803bb4c1 - DOI - PubMed

[8] Eisenberg D, Golberstein E, Gollust SE. Help-seeking and access to mental health care in a university student population. Med Care. (2007) 45:594–601. 10.1097/MLR.0b013e31803bb4c1 - DOI - PubMed

[9] Eisenberg D, Hunt J, Speer N, Zivin K. Mental health service utilization among college students in the United States. J Nerv Ment Dis. (2011) 199:301–8. 10.1097/NMD.0b013e3182175123 - DOI - PubMed

[10] Eisenberg D, Hunt J, Speer N, Zivin K. Mental health service utilization among college students in the United States. J Nerv Ment Dis. (2011) 199:301–8. 10.1097/NMD.0b013e3182175123 - DOI - PubMed

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Using Peer Support to Strengthen Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Review

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Using Peer Support to Strengthen Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Review

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