Unit of Psychiatry, Institute of Translational Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, 3/F, Building E12, Avenida da Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR, China.
Center for Cognition and Brain Sciences, University of Macau, Macao SAR, China.
Global Health. 2020 Aug 19;16(1):75. doi: 10.1186/s12992-020-00608-w.
The 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been found in more than 200 countries worldwide since December, 2019. In China, a major reason for the rapid transmission of the COVID-19 in early stage of the outbreak is the huge numbers of passengers boarding their "last train home" to meet family members during the Spring Festival. Most of these travelers were internal migrant workers. In order to reduce the risk of the COVID-19 transmission, public transportation networks were suspended, and many migrant workers who returned to their hometowns needed to be quarantined for 2 weeks, which led to the delay of returning back to cities to work. Many businesses have temporarily closed because of the risk of COVID-19 transmission, leading to unemployment of many workers. Sudden loss of income and further quarantine enforcement in cities can exacerbate existing mental health problems or trigger new mental disorders among affected migrant workers. However, to date no specific guidelines or strategies about mental health services of migrant workers have been released. Health authorities and professionals should pay more attention to this vulnerable group and provide timely mental health service support for those in need.
自 2019 年 12 月以来，2019 年新型冠状病毒病（COVID-19）已在全球 200 多个国家发现。在中国，COVID-19 在疫情早期迅速传播的一个主要原因是春节期间大量乘客乘坐“返乡末班车”回家与家人团聚。这些旅行者大多是外来务工人员。为了降低 COVID-19 传播的风险，公共交通网络被暂停，许多返回家乡的农民工需要被隔离 2 周，这导致他们返回城市工作的时间延迟。由于 COVID-19 传播的风险，许多企业暂时关闭，导致许多工人失业。突然失去收入和城市进一步隔离可能会加剧受影响的农民工现有的心理健康问题或引发新的精神障碍。然而，迄今为止，尚无针对农民工心理健康服务的具体指南或策略。卫生当局和专业人员应更加关注这一弱势群体，并为有需要的人提供及时的心理健康服务支持。
