UBC researcher studies mental health impact of quarantine

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — Thousands have been quarantined amid the COVID-19 outbreak, including hundreds of Canadians.

Those isolated have been confined to a small space with little to no face to face contact with the outside world for weeks, and sometimes months.

At UBC, a professor has been granted federal funding to research how the quarantine experience can impact someone’s mental health.

Research from the 1990s found that social isolation made people more vulnerable to death, but this study was conducted before modern technology.

UBC sociologist Dr. Yue Qian, originally from Wuhan, says the virus outbreak is “deeply embedded in real people’s lives.”

“I feel the responsibility to understand the process,” she adds.

Qian is one of five UBC lead researchers collectively receiving $2.8-million from the federal government.

This money is part of the $27-million Canada announced Friday was dedicated to COVID-19 research. This amount will be shared among 47 groups across the country.

Other UBC initiatives include research into who gets sick and how and looking into a mobile healthcare app and how it could help those in self-isolation.

Qian says, “We need to work together to help people under quarantine to stay connected with the outside world.”