Basseterre, St.Kitts (Friday 28th May 2021)- Premier Mark Brantley has informed that the mental health register in St.Kitts and Nevis has increased noting ” we feel a lot of that is connected to COVID.”
 
“…I know I that many have focused on the economic impact of lock downs but let us not forget that there is also a social and psychological impact…,’ he stated while responding to a question at his monthly press conference held on Tuesday 25th May 2021.
 
Brantley was quizzed about the potential for a lockdown and the effect such would have on the economy.
 
“It would be devastating.  Our finances are already at an all-time low. Our main engine tourism is still substantially offline. So if we go into lock down where our restaurants and our bars our business communities shut down, the potential for that of course is that the country comes to a standstill, and I know I that many have focused on the economic impact of lock downs but let us not forget that there is also a social and psychological impact that I believe is still not yet fully understood and still not fully evaluated.”
 
He continued: “What does impact do to the psyche of our people; the inability to move about? Humans are by their nature, they are social creatures. What happens when a government tells you that you are essentially isolated from others? If you live alone for example, you may well get up every morning and look forward to going to work to engage with work mates, you may look forward to church on a Sunday to engage with members of the congregation.  All of a sudden you are told that you cannot leave your house so all of that engagement you look forward to each week disappears. What does that do you? These are still things that are uncertain but I can tell you here in St.Kitts and Nevis, our mental health register has increased in terms of persons who have sought assistance, our register for those seeking counselling has increased, and we feel a lot of that is connected to COVID.”
 
Brantley went on to talk about such unseen part of the health crisis.
 
“That is the unseen part of the health crisis of COVID; that people are having psychological, mental, emotional issues as a result of lockdown, joblessness, hopelessness so all of these are factors that we have to take into account.”
 
According to him, the decision to lockdown will not be a light decision.
 
“It will have to be based on the evidence, it will have to be based on the fact that there is an outbreak that we feel the only way to do is to lockdown. At this point, I hasten to say that based on discussions that I was a part of last night, that is not on the table but I do not rule anything out because COVID is a far moving threat. Today it is not here, tomorrow we wake up and we hear we have 15 or 16 cases. That is the nature of COVID, and so no lock down on the table at the moment but it is a rapidly evolving situation and we would have to see that the contact tracing that is still ongoing takes us today, tomorrow and over the next few days.”
 
Meanwhile, information gleaned online from www.paho.org on the topic of ‘Mental Health and COVID-19’ shares that: “Fear, worry, and stress are normal responses during times when we are faced with uncertainty or the unknown. So it is normal and understandable that people are experiencing these feelings in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
 
“Added to the fear of contracting the virus in a pandemic such as COVID-19 is the impact of the significant changes to our daily lives brought on by efforts to contain and slow down the spread of the virus. Faced with the challenging new realities of social distancing, working from home, temporary unemployment, home-schooling of children, and lack of physical contact with loved ones and friends, it is important that we look after our mental, as well as our physical, health.”
 
Notably, materials relating to looking after one’s mental health during the COVID pandemic is found on the page, and additional resources is expected to be added as such becomes available.
 
PAHO is the Pan American Health Organization and WHO- The World Health Organization.