Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Psychiatric Service Use Among Psychiatric Outpatients.

Objective: Both general medical and mental health services were disrupted during the pandemic. It is unclear how these disruptions played out for people with various mental health diagnoses. We compared change in mental health status and use of mental health services between four psychiatric groups: schizophrenia spectrum disorders, bipolar disorder, unipolar depression, and anxiety/obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

Method: Using a semi-structured interview, 492 outpatients with psychiatric disorders who had used psychiatric services at a university hospital before the pandemic were assessed on the phone during the pandemic.

Results: About half of the sample reported a need for contact with mental health services during the pandemic, half of whom actually used services. Need for contact was much lower in the schizophrenia group than other diagnostic groups, whereas actual use of services was lower in the unipolar depression and anxiety/OCD groups.

Conclusions: Patients with severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorders, may not be in a more disadvantageous position in terms of psychiatric service use during the pandemic. The pandemic response structure of mental health services should be modified to fit the needs of anxiety/depression spectrum patients.