The mental health of people in Taiwan is at its best ever, with an overall score of 83.3, likely because of Taiwan’s success in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, a biannual national mental health index survey released yesterday by the Mental Health Foundation showed.
Physician Yang Tsung-tsair (楊聰財), the foundation’s mental health index division convener, said that the telephone survey collected valid responses from 1,082 adults aged 20 and above, on the effects of COVID-19 on their mental health.
The survey’s overall scores in election years were often lower than other years, but the score reached a record 83.3 points this year, despite the presidential and legislative elections being held in January, he said.
“Although the world has been impacted by the pandemic, Taiwan has achieved an impressive disease prevention performance, allowing people to feel safe, especially in comparison to seeing lockdowns and high mortality rates in other countries,” Yang said.
“The high score also shows that people’s mental resilience is increasing,” he added.
However, 21.4 percent of the respondents said that the pandemic has affected their financial situation negatively, which could also influence their mental health, as some might think they did not receive benefits equalling their contributions, Yang said.
While 96.4 percent of the respondents said they are aware that keeping a proper social distance is important, about 22.1 percent also felt that disease prevention measures inconvenienced them, he said.
Moreover, 26.4 percent of the respondents felt “lonely,” Yang said, adding that it implies that there might be 4.22 million lonely people in Taiwan, who might have a higher risk of experiencing depression, a sleeping disorder, chronic anxiety or other problems.
Chairman Hu Hai-kuo (胡海國) said that the foundation urges the government and social workers to show more concern for people who have been financially affected by the pandemic, and encourages people who feel lonely to try to find groups in which they feel a sense of belonging.
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