Powerful Tools for Reaching Patients

COVID-19 and Mental Health: Powerful Tools for Reaching Your Patients

By Bruce Trimble

The year 2020 was defined by the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, arguably the worst pandemic the world has seen in 100 years. The illness affects nearly every aspect of life, from work and school to everyday activities like getting groceries – and even our wardrobes. Unfortunately, it also impacts the mental health of Americans.

AMERICANS’ VIEW OF MENTAL HEALTH: PANDEMIC VERSION

In 2020, Universal Health Services, Inc. (UHS), parent company of North Little Rock’s The BridgeWay Hospital, commissioned a national survey assessing and quantifying Americans' views and perceptions on mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Major findings of the UHS survey include: • 68% of American adults surveyed view COVID-19 as a severe or extreme crisis in the U.S. • 62% of survey participants report increased stress, anxiety, or depression. Of those feeling COVID-related stress, anxiety, or depression, 55% report these stressors are interfering moderately, severely, or overwhelmingly in their lives. • Nearly 25% feel COVID-related stress, anxiety, and depression most or all of the time. • Concerns about the economy, unknown duration of COVID-19 effects, no 'normalcy' in the near future, isolation from friends and family, and risk of virus exposure are the leading sources of stress, anxiety, and depression. • One in four surveyed are unclear what action to take if they had a mental health crisis. • Of those with COVID-related anxiety, stress, or depression, most are self-managing these negative feelings; only 15% used online tools and sought help from a licensed counselor or therapist. • Fear of virus exposure was the key barrier to mental health treatment during this time, followed by the cost of co-pay and a negative perception of telehealth. • Telehealth: About half of adults surveyed used telehealth to treat a mental or physical condition, most of whom had a positive experience. • Nearly half of Americans expect to regain 'normalcy' within a few months; more than 90% are at least somewhat hopeful of their home life in the future.

Universal Health Services, Inc., parent company of North Little Rock's The BridgeWay Hospital, surveyed a national audience about views and perceptions of mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic.

62%of survey participants report increased stress, anxiety, or depression. Of those, 55% report these stressors are interfering moderately, severely, or overwhelmingly in their lives.

GATHERING THE FACTS

Although many anticipated a return to normalcy within a few months, the virus persists. Sadly, many of its effects on mental health also remain. In 2021, Mental Health America (MHA) published its annual State of Mental Health report emphasizing the impact of COVID-19 on mental health, using results from the more than 1.5 million people who were screened through MHA Screening from January to September 2020. From these screens, MHA found: • Young people are those struggling most with their mental health. • Rates of suicidal ideation are highest among youth, especially LGBTQ+ youth. • The number of people looking for help with anxiety and depression is skyrocketing. • The number of people screening with moderate to severe symptoms of depression and anxiety increased throughout 2020 and remains higher than rates before COVID-19 hit. • More people report frequent thoughts of suicide and self-harm than have ever been recorded in the MHA Screening Program since its launch in 2014. • People screening as “at-risk for mental health conditions” are struggling most with loneliness or isolation. • People who identify as Asian or Pacific Islander searched for mental health resources more in 2020 than ever before. • While rates of anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation are increasing for people of all races and ethnicities, there are notable differences in those changes over time.

AND WE CAN’T FORGET THIS…

Due to 2020’s stay-at-home orders, alcohol sales and consumption increased. Neilson reported a 54% increase in national sales of alcohol for the week ending March 21, 2020, compared with one year prior, and online sales increased 262% over 2019.

Also, in Arkansas, what was once a temporary rule change, spurred by the pandemic, allowing Arkansas restaurants, liquor stores, and breweries to deliver alcoholic beverages to consumers become state law in July of 2021.

With increased access to alcohol, Americans are consuming more. For example, an October 2020 study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association revealed that alcohol consumption in the United States rose 14% during pandemic shutdowns. Also, women reported alarming increases in heavy drinking as early as the spring of 2020. Sadly, excessive alcohol use may lead to or compound existing mental health problems.

The 2021 State of Mental Health report, published by Mental Health America (MHA), says that more people reported frequent thoughts of suicide and selfharm than have ever been recorded in the MHA Screening Program since its launch in 2014.

COMMUNICATING OUR MESSAGE INTERNALLY

To continue providing quality care during pandemic, The BridgeWay enacted numerous protocols to provide a safe environment for employees, patients, and their families. Internal communication was vital for conveying those protocols, which evolved over time as the pandemic wore on.

Before the onset of the pandemic, we launched an intranet for employee use, which replaced the monthly print newsletter we published. The site serves to recognize employees for service excellence, announces policy and procedure updates, and spotlights messages from the CEO. In March of 2020, we added a new section under Infection Control to highlight COVID-19 updates.

We promoted the site by conducting educational events and producing promotional items. In its first year, the number of individual clicks on the site was 3,665, an average of 10.04 hits per day.

COMMUNICATING OUR MESSAGE EXTERNALLY

Before March of 2020, we utilized telehealth, although not extensively. However, because of the pandemic and its limitation of in-person visits, we soon adopted Zoom to conduct mental health teleassessments.

We found that most of the people who needed an assessment were not familiar with Zoom. It was awkward to ask people experiencing a mental health crisis to first download an app before being assessed.

To overcome this barrier, we added a link to the Zoom app on our website connecting to our own electronic and printed poster with a QR code and instructions for using the app. In addition, we imprinted the QR code on the reverse of hospital staff business cards. As a result, teleassessments increased by 111% from April to January 2020.

KATV Channel 7 and The BridgeWay, along with its sister hospitals Pinnacle Pointe Hospitals and Rivendell Behavioral Health, provide information, resources, and frank discussions about mental health on Therapeutic Thursdays.

CONNECTING WITH PATIENTS AND FAMILIES

We first partnered with KATV (Little Rock’s ABC affiliate) and our UHS sister facilities, Pinnacle Pointe Hospital and Rivendell Behavioral Health, in 2020 to provide Therapeutic Thursdays, a weekly segment featured on Good Morning Arkansas social media. The features were designed to promote our ability to treat children, adolescents, and adults dealing with mental illness and substance use disorder.

With the arrival of the pandemic, we shifted the focus of our topics from general mental illnesses to issues that arise during the pandemic’s unusual circumstances. Those topics included: • What Those in Recovery Need During a Pandemic. • Can Your Relationship Survive Lockdown? • Are People Reluctant to Admit to Mental Health Issues Due to the Pandemic?

CONNECTING WITH EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES

According to a 2020 survey, two-thirds of employees reported that poor mental health undercut their job performance during the pandemic, and 40% of employees were battling burnout. As a result, employers began paying more attention to employee mental health.

We have always treated employers and employees with a continuum of care that serves adults of all ages with mental health and substance use disorders. Yet, in 2020 we began to treat more employers who laid off employees or closed their doors either temporarily or permanently. These situations caused anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation in the employers. To address these issues, we developed ads, articles, and posters that spoke to this audience. In support of the campaign, we embarked upon an outreach program to meet with employers and offer tips on how to provide self-care and support for employees.

In addition, we developed a partnership with The Venture Center, called VCHealth. Working with Chenal Family Therapy, an outpatient provider, we conduct a monthly in-service on entrepreneurs' mental health and wellness resources. If these discussions trigger an emotional response among the attendees, The BridgeWay provides a licensed therapist available at no charge. The sessions are free and open to the public. It's been rewarding to see so many people interested in and recognizing the importance of mental health.

PROMOTING SELF-CARE

Speaking of rewarding, one of the positive outcomes associated with the pandemic is that people are exploring self-care more than ever. A May 11, 2020, Tweet by Google Search Trends revealed that self-care was trending at an alltime high.

According to Google Trends, the number of searches for "self-care" has more than doubled since 2015.

Given the stigma associated with mental illness and the treatment thereof, it is encouraging that more people are considering their mental health.

The BridgeWay earned 2021 Diamond Awards for excellence in health care marketing and public relations for its intranet project and its collaboration with KATV on Therapeutic Thursdays. The Diamond Awards are sponsored by the Arkansas Hospital Association and the Arkansas Society for Healthcare Marketing and Public Relations.

Bruce Trimble, MA, APR, is the Director of Business Development for The BridgeWay Hospital, a psychiatric hospital for children, adolescents, and adults in North Little Rock, Arkansas. An avid mental health advocate, he was appointed by the Governor of Arkansas to the Arkansas Suicide Prevention Council in 2015 when the council was commissioned, and he served as co-chair from 2015 to 2017. In 2018, he was instrumental in establishing a call center for the Arkansas Suicide Prevention Hotline. In 2021, he was invited by Stephanie Williams, Chief of Staff for Arkansas Department of Health, and Colonel Nate Todd, Arkansas Secretary of Veteran’s Affairs, co-chairs, to serve on the state’s Federal Veteran’s Affairs Governor’s Challenge to Prevent Suicide Among Service Members, Veterans, and their Families.