Covid-19 and mental health: a transformational opportunity to apply an evidence-based approach to clinical practice and research

Abstract

The Oxford Precision Psychiatry Lab (https://oxfordhealthbrc.nihr.ac.uk/our-work/oxppl/, @OxfordPPL) collected from senior clinicians in the local Mental Health Trust a list of specific and focused questions about mental health issues, healthcare provision and covid-19 (https://oxfordhealthbrc.nihr.ac.uk/our-work/oxppl/covid-19-and-mental-health-guidance/). We prepared a synthesis of guidance in answer to the specific clinical questions posed by clinicians. We decided to focus first on English language guidance (covering the UK, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore) about two topics in relation to covid-19: clozapine management and inpatient issues (including end-of-life care). The summary tables were converted into an open access web page with embedded hyperlinks for ease of use (https://oxfordhealthbrc.nihr.ac.uk/our-work/oxppl/covid-19-and-mental-health-guidance/).The web page went live on 01 April 2020 (https://oxfordhealthbrc.nihr.ac.uk/our-work/oxppl/covid-19-and-mental-health-guidance/ .Our second and parallel workstream is a systematic review of the evidence of the impact of covid-19 on mental health patients, and also on clinical mental health staff and delivery of care. These are examples of how evidence-based medicine techniques can be applied quickly and successfully in a real-world situation.