Crossing barriers: Role of a tele-outreach program addressing psychosocial needs in the midst of COVID-19 pandemic

Ravindran, Swati; P, Lakshmi Nirisha; Channaveerachari, Naveen Kumar; Seshadri, Shekhar P; Kasi, Sekar; Manikappa, Sanjeev Kumar; Cherian, Anish V.; Palanimuthu T, Sivakumar; Sudhir, Paulomi; Govindan, Radhakrishnan; P., Bhasker Reddy; Christopher, Allen Daniel; George, Sobin

Novel Coronavirus disease 19 (COVID 19) pandemic has affected more than 2 million individuals and causing over 0.1 million deaths worldwide. In India, the pandemic has gained momentum in the last few weeks with over 10,000 cases and 400 deaths. In the absence of any pharmacological cure on the horizon, countries have resorted to the use of strict public health measures to curtail spread of further infection to fight the coronavirus. The pandemic and its social implications have triggered mental health concerns among the masses. Providing psychological first aid and psychosocial support is vital in mitigating the distress and enhance the coping strategies of people to deal with this biological disaster. Tele-mental health services play an important role in this regard. In this article we describe our preliminary experience in understanding the psychological concerns of general public and addressing them by providing psychological support through a national telephonic helpline.