Understanding COVID-19’s impact on mental health in Peru

A UCL-led project exploring the impact of coronavirus on older people's mental health in Peru is one of the first to receive new government funding, aimed at addressing the pandemic's impact in lowand middle-income countries. Professor John Hurst (UCL Division of Medicine) is one of 12 lead academics to receive funding as part of the Global Effort on COVID-19 (GECO) Health Research initiative, led by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), in partnership with UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). Working with Peruvian NGO, AB PRISMA, and Johns Hopkins Center for Global NCD Research and Training, his study will explore the direct and indirect impacts of COVID-19 on the mental wellbeing of older adults in Peru. The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected older adults worldwide, with this age group having the highest morbidity and mortality. Measures such as quarantine and social distancing aim to reduce viral transmission and protect the most vulnerable. However, there are likely unintended consequences of such restrictive measures on the mental and physical health of older adults, including increasing feelings of loneliness, reduced physical activity, depression and anxiety. The new study aims to generate data to inform interventions and policy to mitigate the effects of restrictive mobility measures on the physical and mental wellbeing of older adults from low resource settings.