The impact of COVID-19 on mental health. (Morneau Shepell)

By David Opinko

Alberta saw the biggest drop in mental health scores in Canada

Apr 20, 2020 | 10:57 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – The COVID-19 pandemic has played a negative role on the mental health of most Canadians, but it appears Albertans have been hit the hardest.

That is according to the new Mental Health Index report from Morneau Shepell, who has been analyzing mental health scores since 2017.

“The overall Mental Health Index dropped 12 points from the benchmark. Such a change is statistically significant and unprecedented in the three years when benchmark data was being collected. The current score of 63 is equivalent to the first percentile of the benchmark.”

For the report, they surveyed 3,000 Canadians between March 27-30, 2020 who were selected to be representatives of different age, gender, industry, and geographic makeups.

Morneau Shepell then turned each respondent’s answers into a point value. This was calculated into a Mental Health Index (MHI) and a Mental Stress Change Score (MSCS).

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For the MHI, The group found that Albertans had a 14.3 point decline in overall mental health, which is the highest of all provinces. The other prairie provinces rounded out the three biggest declines with Manitoba experiencing a 13.5 point drop and Saskatchewan’s score falling by 12.9 points.

Of all mental health categories under the MHI, anxiety and depression grew the most amongst Canadians.

“There is a greater drop in mental health for those who are not currently employed, compared to those currently employed, and a greater drop for those who identify as female compared to male. Further, the younger the age group, the more negative the change in mental health,” reads the report.

Approximately 80 per cent of respondents felt their mental health had been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with responses ranging from having “some negative impact” to a “significant negative impact.”

The single greatest contributor to this was the financial impact of the pandemic followed by a loved one dying from the virus.

The full report from Morneau Shepell can be found online here.

The total mental health score, including mental health categories. (Morneau Shepell)

Mental Health Index by demographics. (Morneau Shepell)

The impact of COVID-19 on mental health. (Morneau Shepell)

Greatest contributors to mental health impacts. (Morneau Shepell)