Correspondence psychological support in times of COVID-19: The essen community-based cope concept

Abstract

The SARS CoV-2-virus (COVID-19) pandemic is pushing national and international structures to their limits. Little is known about treatment options to combat the novel virus, but the same applies to the effects of COVID-19 on people’s mental health. In Germany, as in many other countries, governmental actions impact peoples’ individual freedom. These highly necessary actions to slow down the spread of the virus, however, are a burden to the community. We established a structured concept to support psychological burdened people in Essen, which is located in the Ruhr area, a metropolitan region with more than 5.1 million inhabitants in the heart of the federal state North Rhine Westphalia. The psychological burden following the spread of the virus and individual restrictions should not be neglected.