Dostopnost do storitev na področju duševnega zdravja v času epidemije covid-19

Abstract

High levels of hospitalisations during the first year of covid-19 epidemic demanded a swift adjustment of the health system. This resulted in temporary reallocations of healthcare workers to different tasks, limiting or temporarily suspending certain health services and programs, including mental health services, despite an increase in mental health difficulties during the epidemic. The aim of the present study was to explore the level of accessibility of mental health services, in 2020, during the covid-19 epidemic and how was the accessibility of mental health services influenced by the reallocations of healthcare workers to different tasks. An online survey was forwarded to all health institutions within the Slovenian public health system that provide mental health services. The results indicated the lowest accessibility to mental health services during the spring lockdown in 2020, while at the same period the prevalence of reallocations of the healthcare workers was at its highest. Present results also show that lower accessibility to mental health services was present where the levels of reallocations of healthcare workers was high. Implications for management of mental health services in emergency situations like covid-19 epidemic are made.