Canadian study quantifies depression caused by pandemic

A new study suggests that about 1 in 8 older Canadians experienced depression for the first time during the pandemic.

Findings of a survey of more than 20,000 Canadian adults over the age of 50 published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health show a sharp rise in depression among older adults with no previous mental health problems Quantitative data indicating that

Andie MacNeil, a researcher at the University of Toronto and the study’s author, said in a press release on Thursday that this high rate of first-onset depression was “a significant increase in the pandemic’s impact on a previously mentally healthy group of older adults. It highlights serious mental health hazards,” he said. “

The study identified a number of factors correlated with poorer mental health among older adults during the pandemic, including economic hardship, feelings of loneliness and isolation, and family conflicts.

Researchers also evaluated study participants with a track record of poor mental health and found that nearly half (45%) of the group reported a depressed state by the fall of 2020.

Another co-author of the study, Sapiria Burke, a researcher at Carleton University, explored how the pandemic specifically affected people with a history of depression, and how this data could be used in healthcare screening. and what it means for mental health resources.

“Medical professionals should be careful when screening patients who had mental health problems early in life,” she said in a release.

In addition to confirming a sharp rise in depression cases nationwide, the data also determined demographic susceptibility to poor mental health among individuals of low socioeconomic status.

Older Canadians with chronic pain who have difficulty accessing their usual treatments, medications or health care services were more likely to face depression in the fall of 2020.

The study also showed that adults who endured family conflict during the COVID-19 outbreak were three times more likely to develop depression than those who did not.

“Our findings will help health and social work professionals improve targeted screening and outreach to identify and serve older adults at highest risk of depression. I hope so,” said McNeil.