Psychiatry in the Midst of the Pandemic: A Narrative Perspective

Abstract

The era of COVID-19 has initiated dramatic and unexpected changes related to all aspects of life. The impact of these changes is unforeseeable. Health services have encountered many challenges, which one country cannot deal with alone. The contagion of the disease requires changes in all walks of life, specifically health services. Psychiatric services have seen an increased demand from mental health patients and many people alike. This is due to unrest, anxiety, stressful, and the ambiguous characteristics of the present situation. This chapter presents reflections of the first author, the psychiatrist, on the major stakeholders for health systems at the present situation. These stakeholders are regulations, patients, pharmacies, society and community, and psychiatrists themselves. Despite all efforts to deal with the impacts of COVID-19, the need for transforming health systems in general and psychiatry in specific still persists. One of the major conclusions is to develop programs enabling psychiatrists and physicians to deal with their own distress.