Techniques, Methods, and Dissemination of Community-Based Psychological Support Strategies in Times of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Benecke, Anke-Verena; Bäuerle, Alexander; Jansen, Christoph; Schneider, Johanna Sophie; Dörrie, Nora; Teufel, Martin; Skoda, Eva-Maria

In times of the coronavirus pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 psychological support needs to meet certain requirements. Due to the lockdown in many countries of the world, the every-day activities of millions of people are reduced to a minimum. This may cause increased psychosomatic symptoms in persons with pre-existing mental illnesses, and additionally raises new challenges for the general population. As a result of the current contact restrictions, access to psychotherapy is further complicated. To guarantee the best possible care under the given conditions, we developed the CoPE (Coping with Corona: Extended Psychosomatic care in Essen) concept. CoPE is delivered by telephone or video calls as well as online contents. The materials presented at our webpage www.cope-corona.de aim to easily reach citizens affected by symptoms such as worries, depression or anger and let them receive readily understandable expert knowledge and training in basic self-help methods.