Psychosocial Support during the COVID-19 Outbreak in Korea: Activities of Multidisciplinary Mental Health Professionals

Hyun, Jinhee; You, Sungeun; Sohn, Sunju; Kim, Seok-Joo; Bae, Jeongyee; Baik, Myungjae; Cho, In Hee; Choi, Hyunjung; Choi, Kyeong-Sook; Chung, Chan-Seung; Jeong, Chanyoung; Joo, Hyesun; Kim, Eunji; Kim, Heeguk; Kim, Hyun Soo; Ko, Jinsun; Lee, Jung Hyun; Lee, Sang Min; Lee, So Hee; Chung, Un Sun

As of April 18, 2020, there have been a total of 10,653 confirmed cases and 232 deaths due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Korea. The pathogen spread quickly, and the outbreak caused nationwide anxiety and shock. This study presented the anecdotal records that provided a detailed process of the multidisciplinary teamwork in mental health during the COVID-19 outbreak in the country. Psychosocial support is no less important than infection control during an epidemic, and collaboration and networking are at the core of disaster management. Thus, a multidisciplinary team of mental health professionals was immediately established and has collaborated effectively with its internal and external stakeholders for psychosocial support during the COVID-19 outbreak.