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COVID-19 pandemic: Mental stress, depression, anxiety among the university

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Article  in  International Journal of Social Psychiatry · October 2020

DOI: 10.1177/0020764020965995

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965995
letter2020
ISP0010.1177/0020764020965995International Journal of Social PsychiatrySifat et al.
Letter to the Editor
COVID-19 pandemic: Mental stress,
depression, anxiety among the
university students in Bangladesh
Ridwan Islam Sifat
On 27 March 2020, the World Health Organization warned
that stress, anxiety, and fear would increase due to the
COVID-19 pandemic situation (World Health
Organization, 2020). Another research showed that due to
COVID-19 crisis, suicide, domestic violence, mental dis-
orders, anxiety, depressive disorders are already increasing
worldwide (Sifat, 2020).
The lockdown following the unexpected outbreak of
COVID-19 has turned people from social to isolated
human beings as a means of combating the pandemic.
The pandemic impacts have already killed an enormous
number of people across the world, and new cases of
infected people continue to increase. Health experts esti-
mate that about 300 million people suffer from panic and
anxiety disorders and warn that our mental health could
be at high risk (Shah, 2020). Isolation and physical dis-
tance remain a relatively new phenomenon for many peo-
ple. Coping with these new life practices and making
these habitual for a few unpredictable months is the most
challenging task for the freedom-loving people. In mid-
March, all educational institutions in Bangladesh declared
close to preventing the spread of COVID-19 among stu-
dents. Since then, uncertainty has flourished in our edu-
cation sector (Zaman, 2020). More than 3.15 million
tertiary students are facing face uncertainty in education
because of the closing of educational institutions (Sultana
& Ramij, 2020).
Technology in the modern world has been an essential
resource for this adverse circumstance to move on with
our lives and work. Teaching methods online is the best
way to reach out to students and to pursue education as
before. Like most other sectors, the education sector, with
the help of technologies, will continue to operate even
during the COVID-19 pandemic without raising the risk
of spread. The recent Instructions of the Ministry of
Education and the University Grants Commission (UGC)
ask on all universities to ensure online classes and require
private universities to perform online tests following the
UGC guidelines (Priyo & Hazra, 2020). Within this
regime of global closure of educational institutions, tech-
nologically developed countries are provided with all the
resources available for online education, the developing
countries, including Bangladesh, have yet to implement
online education. Despite some drawbacks, public and
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private universities are promoting online education to
save students’ careers by providing better education amid
the pandemic. About 55% of students are not currently
enabled by proper internet access to pursue online educa-
tion. Some of the students who shifted from Dhaka to
their hometown/village were unable to attend sessions
due to weak internet connection and lack of access to
devices (Islam et al., 2020).
Most of the students have shown a shortage of techni-
cal resources, high internet costs, low internet speed, fam-
ily financial instability, and mental stress on students are
the main obstacles to online education in Bangladesh. A
group of mental health experts recently stated that anxiety
and stress are already affecting people. They surveyed
more than 2,000 online participants revealed social isola-
tion was a negative effect of COVID-19, which created
feelings of anxiety, depression, self-harm, and suicide
(Rahman, 2020). Another research found that staying at
home has usually made them depressed mentally. They
heard negative news in the media about COVID-19 new
cases and death toll. Students who feel mentally stressed
refuse to join online classes or are unwilling to participate
in online classes. About 43% of students are mentally
stressed, anxious, and unable to attend the online class
format (Sultana & Ramij, 2020). A nationwide cross-sec-
tional study found that COVID-19 pandemic has imposed
threats on the physical and mental health of the adult pop-
ulation of Bangladesh. The research conducted by an
online survey showed that 57.5% of undergraduate level
students mentally stressed, 30.2% are anxiety disorder,
and 58.8% are depressed (Banna et al., 2020). Another
web-based cross-sectional survey among 476 university
students and the findings found that more than 15% of the
students reportedly had moderately severe depression,
while 18.1% were severely suffering from anxiety. Also,
students who live with families (96.93%) and urban areas
(65.05%) have higher depressive symptoms. In the case of
Department of Development Studies, Bangladesh University of
Professionals, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Corresponding author:
Ridwan Islam Sifat, Department of Development Studies, Bangladesh
University of Professionals, Dhaka 1216, Bangladesh.
Email: ridwanislamsifat@gmail.com
2 International Journal of Social Psychiatry 00(0)
anxiety, 389 (87.7%) students have severe symptoms of
anxiety. Out of the total students with anxiety disorder,
females (33.67%) reported lower anxiety symptoms than
males (66.33%), while students in the early twenties
(66.58%) reported higher anxiety symptoms than males
(66.33%). Stress, depression, anxiety predominated
more in students without physical activity (61.95%),
who were distracted by the possibility of academic fail-
ure (76.60%). In comparison, students living in urban
areas (62.21%) with families (96.40%) also reported
signs of anxiety (Islam et al., 2020).
However, as online learning is a new thing for many
of us, certain specific factors need to be prioritized and
taken seriously. Some psychological problems such as
anxiety, depression, frustration, and trauma may affect
students by maintaining strict physical distances and iso-
lation. If the students suffer the most, it will impact the
entire teaching-learning environment. The government,
non-governmental organizations (NGOs), voluntary
organizations, and youth-led projects should launch free
tele-counseling and video-counseling to help people suf-
fering from mental distress. In this context, there is a
need for a psychiatrist to maintain the mental balance of
students. Any educational institution may consider
establishing a mental health cell consisting of a psychia-
trist or psychologist and the dean and senior faculty
members of the institute. The online counseling should
be arranged along with online classes. It is equally
important to counsel parents and students. Daily assess-
ment of stress levels using online tools may prevent a
student from reaching a state of depression.
At the same time, teachers should also be encouraged
to manage students during online courses. The assign-
ment and exam should be conducted online since other
universities around the world are now doing the same
thing. The mental health cell will continue to monitor
students after the lockdown, as students take time to
return to normal life. Regular supervision and providing
counseling for needy students will help to protect stu-
dent’s mental health and help them succeed in their per-
sonal and professional life. After all, students should
take care of their well-being individually. The authori-
ties should develop a clear set of guidelines for online
classes and assessments to minimize the uncertainty and
the resulting anxiety.
Funding
The author received no financial support for the research, author-
ship, and/or publication of this article.
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ORCID iD
Ridwan Islam Sifat https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9897-0870
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