COVID-19 has significantly increased the suicide risk for Canadians with preexisting mental health challenges and experiences of marginalization, reveals a new survey by the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) in partnership with researchers at the University of British Columbia.
While six per cent of those surveyed said they experienced suicidal thoughts and feelings during the outbreak, this proportion rises to 18 per cent of those with preexisting mental health challenges, 16 per cent of Indigenous people and 15 per cent of those with a disability.
Other groups that experienced suicidal thoughts more frequently were people who identify as LGBTQ+ (14 per cent) and parents living with children under 18 (nine per cent).
“COVID-19 may have been termed the ‘great equalizer’, but it certainly hasn’t affected everyone equally—people who were already experiencing mental health challenges and experiences of marginalization appear to be the hardest hit,” says lead researcher Emily Jenkins, a professor of nursing at UBC.
She added that the results align with surveys by the Public Health Agency of Canada and others that show threats to Canadians’ mental health are growing in the wake of the pandemic, and it is among the first to show the disproportionate mental health impacts on various subgroups.
The survey was conducted among a nationally representative sample of 3,000 adults living in Canada. It ran from May 14-29, as the country started to reopen after lockdown and other COVID-19 measures.
Preexisting mental health conditions
The survey also highlighted the new pressures faced by people who already experience mental health issues. These individuals are twice as likely as those without a mental health issue (59 per cent compared to 33 per cent) to say their mental health has declined amidst the pandemic.
They are also:
- 2.5 times more likely to feel depressed (46 per cent vs 17 per cent)
- three times more likely to have trouble coping (28 per cent vs 11 per cent)
- four times more likely to have had suicidal thoughts (18 per cent vs four per cent)
- four times more likely to have deliberately harmed themselves (four per cent vs one per cent)
Among this group, very few are accessing supports such as in-person counselling, virtual mental health care or online resources in general.
