Naina Mishra

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 8

More than 60 per cent Covid patients admitted to the PGI used prayers as one of the ways to cope with the disease and the isolation period, reveals a study published in the Asian Journal of Psychiatry.

The study has been authored by PGI doctors — Dr Swapnajeet Sahoo, Dr Aseem Mehra, Dr Devakshi Dua, Dr Sandeep Grover from the Department of Psychiatry, Dr Vikas Suri and Dr Pankaj Malhotra from Internal Medicine, Dr Lakshmi Narayana Yaddanapudi and Dr GD Puri from the Department of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Unit. The study sample comprised 50 patients.

On mechanism for coping with the disease and negative emotions, about two-third (more than 60 per cent) of the patients said ‘remembering God’ and ‘praying to God’ helped them to a large extent. One-third (34 per cent) of the patients reported ‘listening to religious discourses’ to be quite helpful during their stay at the hospital for overcoming negative emotional states.

According to the PGI study, people in India usually turn to God at the time of crisis and possibly, externalising the responsibility to a higher power leads to a reduction in anxiety and distress. The study suggested that clinicians involved in managing people with Covid should carefully evaluate the religious beliefs and practices of persons, and may also encourage patients to have faith in God.

On a change in perspective towards life, several participants (48%) reported an ‘increase in faith in God’ and about one-fourth reported a ‘reduced faith in power of money’.

Vulnerable to depression

The PGI findings also suggested that despite being provided with psychological support, about two-fifth (38 per cent) patient screen positive for anxiety disorder or depression nearing the time of discharge. “This suggests that despite psychological support, many patients develop psychological morbidity. There is a need for follow-up consultations for such patients,” the study said.