• Health Policy and Management
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.293-308
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• 2024

Background: Assessing the change in mental health status of quarantined patients in community treatment centers at the time of admission and discharge, and inferring the influencing factors. Methods: The study was conducted on a sample of 1,941 quarantined patients from three community treatment centers. Changes in anxiety, psychological distress, post-traumatic stress, depression, and self-harm ideation between admission and discharge were categorized as either "improved" or "worsened." Inference was performed to determine the probability of worsening in mental health status. Results: The mental health status of quarantined patients, such as anxiety and depression, was relatively higher than that of the general population. Anxiety (84.3% improved) and psychological distress (79.0% improved) were reduced during quarantine treatment. However, some patients continued to experience moderate to severe levels of anxiety (11.2%) and psychological distress (11.0%) at discharge. As for depression, the depression of moderate or higher level was increased at the time of discharge (28.7%→36.7%) compared to admission. The deterioration of anxiety and psychological distress was found to be the most significant factor influencing the worsening of depression at discharge (odds ratio [OR] for anxiety deterioration, 2.04; OR for psychological distress deterioration, 3.56). These effects were also observed similarly in post-traumatic stress and self-injury ideation. Conclusion: Improving anxiety and psychological distress among quarantined patients in community treatment centers can reduce the worsening of post-traumatic stress, depression, and self-injury ideation at the time of discharge. These findings provide evidence for the need for active mental health management from the initial stages of quarantine treatment.