People with a mental illness and their families face difficult challenges amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Eden Social Welfare Foundation said on Wednesday, urging the government not to suspend necessary support services.
Local COVID-19 outbreaks in May and a nationwide level 3 COVID-19 alert in effect from the middle of that month led to visiting restrictions at healthcare and long-term care facilities, as well as the suspension of community services and activities.
The restrictions have caused many people with mental illness to be separated from their families or caregivers, leading to worsened conditions and causing some family members to feel helpless and isolated as support services were suspended, the foundation said.
A hotline volunteer at the foundation said that a father had called asking for help, saying that his son’s disorder worsened during the level 3 alert, and that his son was hiding in the corner of his room with a knife.
The man took his son to see a doctor, but the son was only given an injection, as doctors told the father they were worried that there were not enough hospital beds to hold the son for treatment, the volunteer said, adding that the father felt helpless, as the local health department’s community counseling service and other hotlines were also suspended.
Eden Fountain House director Liao Fu-yuan (廖福源) said that based on the calls the foundation received from families of people with mental illness, they faced five common challenges.
The challenges are reduced healthcare capacity, limiting emergency medical care and placement; restrictions on visiting and communicating with patients, causing them to lose connection with the outside world; suspension of community daycare and support services, limiting external stimulation; an overwhelmed healthcare system, making regular follow-up visits and refill prescriptions difficult; and the suspension of social work services, leaving families feeling neglected and isolated, he said.
Liao said that some electronic devices have always been prohibited for patients in psychiatric wards, but as hospitals have imposed tightened visiting restrictions amid the pandemic, many people in such facilities lost nearly all contact with their families, caregivers and social workers, which could cause their conditions to worsen.
The foundation said as the pandemic can worsen at any time, the government should understand the needs of people with mental illness and their families, and prepare to provide necessary support services should another local outbreak occur.
The Grand Hotel Taipei on Saturday confirmed that its information system had been illegally accessed and expressed its deepest apologies for the concern it has caused its customers, adding that the issue is being investigated by the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau. The hotel said that on Tuesday last week, it had discovered an external illegal intrusion into its information system. An initial digital forensic investigation confirmed that parts of the system had been accessed, it said, adding that the possibility that some customer data were stolen and leaked could not be ruled out. The actual scope and content of the affected data
DO THEY BITE IT? Cats have better memories than people might think, but their motivation is based entirely around the chance of getting fed Cats can remember the identity of the people who fed them the day before, Taipei-based veterinarians said on Friday, debunking a popular myth that cats have a short memory. If a stray does not recognize the person who fed them the previous day, it is likely because they are not carrying food and the cat has no reason to recognize them, said Wu Chou Animal Hospital head Chen Chen-huan (陳震寰). “When cats come to a human bearing food, it is coming for the food, not the person,” he said. “The food is the key.” Since the cat’s attention is on the food, it
A New York-based NGO has launched a global initiative to rename the nation’s overseas missions, most of which operate under the name "Taipei," to "Taiwan Representative Office (TRO)," according to a news release. Ming Chiang (江明信), CEO of Hello Taiwan, announced the campaign at a news conference in Berlin on Monday, coinciding with the World Forum held from Monday through Wednesday, the institution stated in the release. Speaking at the event, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Huang Jie (黃捷) said she believed this renaming campaign would enable the international community to see Taiwan
TOO DANGEROUS: The families agreed to suspend crewed recovery efforts that could put rescuers in danger from volcanic gases and unstable terrain The bodies of two Taiwanese tourists and a Japanese pilot have been located inside a volcanic crater, Japanese authorities said yesterday, nearly a month after a sightseeing helicopter crashed during a flight over southwestern Japan. Drone footage taken at the site showed three bodies near the wreckage of the aircraft inside a crater on Mount Aso in Kumamoto Prefecture, police and fire officials said. The helicopter went missing on Jan. 20 and was later found on a steep slope inside the Nakadake No. 1 Crater, about 50m below the rim. Authorities said that conditions at the site made survival highly unlikely, and ruled
RSS