During the 148th session of the Executive Board on Epidemiology of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), Dr. Tedros Adhanam, Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), addressed the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Geneva, Switzerland, nd, January 21, 2021.
Christopher Black | WHO | By Reuters
A senior WHO official said on Friday that the Covid-19 epidemic had caused more trauma than World War II and would last “for years to come.”
“After World War II, the world experienced a mass shock, as World War II affected the lives of many, many people. And now, even with this Kovid epidemic, more people have been affected,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanam Ghebreyes said in a news release on Friday. Said at the conference. “Almost the whole world is affected, everyone on the surface of the world is really affected.”
“And that means the mass trauma, which is even greater than the proportion, is even greater than what the world has experienced since World War II,” he added, noting the impact on mental health. “And when mass trauma occurs, it affects communities for years to come.”
His comments came in response to a question about whether the impact of the epidemic on the country’s economy and mental health should be taken into account, as they chart the way forward. The tributaries of the Tedros stressed that mental health should be a priority.
“The answer is yes,” said Maria Van Kerkov, head of the WHO’s Mer Filling and Zoonosis Unit. “The effect of this on individuals varies, whether you have lost a loved one, or a family member or friend to the virus. You will lose your job or not, children who have not come to school, people who are in very difficult situations. I have to stay home. “
Kerkhov added that the world is still in the “acute phase” of the epidemic, when the virus is being spread by the community, and killing thousands every week. He added, however, that the epidemic mental health figure would emerge as a major issue in the long run, adding that “more emphasis needs to be placed on our well-being by governments, by communities, by families, by individuals.”
Dr Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO’s Health Emergency Program, urged people not only to highlight the epidemic’s mental health as a problem, but also to discuss solutions.
“It’s one thing to say that mental health and mental health are under pressure – that’s true – but the opposite should be what we’re doing to provide and provide mental social support to people and communities.”
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