Global action needed to prevent the deepening crisis in mental health Format By Birgitte Bischoff-Ebbesen,* The verdict is in: COVID-19 worsens mental health. So there can be no excuse and no delay in stepping up now to prevent a worsening and chronic catastrophe. There is no health without mental health, therefore recovery from the pandemic needs to factor in mental health and psychosocial interventions. Let’s step back and view the evidence. No group is immune from COVID-19’s insidious effects on mental health: from school children, to those of us working remotely, to the elderly. Studies have documented the extreme negative impact of the isolation caused by school closures which, at one point, saw 90 per cent of the world’s children locked out of school. A study of children in China found elevated rates of depression and anxiety. Similarly, another study found 86 per cent of Italian and Spanish parents noticed changes in their children’s emotional states and behavior during home confinement.