Effect of COVID-19 lockdown on the psycho-socioeconomic health of families in Enugu metropolis, Enugu state

Abstract

Background: The aggressive COVID-19 restrictive mitigation measures of lockdown by nations are with consequent effects on the populations. This study aimed to assess the psychological and socio-economic effects of COVID-19 lockdown among families in Enugu metropolis, Enugu state, Nigeria. Methods: This was a cross sectional descriptive study of 409 household heads in Enugu metropolis. Data were analyzed using IBM statistical package 23.0 and test of significance set at 0.05. Results: The mean age of respondents was 37.2±8.7 years. Majority, 83.1% were restricted in movement. Stress (5.9%) and sexual abuse (6.5%) were noted psychological effects. About 44.3% were not satisfied with life, basic social services of market (34.2%), banking (23.5%) and educational services (9.3%). Also 44.5% were not satisfied with their economic situation as 35.2% had their working conditions affected, 30.3% complain of price increase and 20.0% had restriction to basic needs. Coping strategies adopted were reduced food ration (27.9%), low wages (22.5%) and sale of assets (6.8%). Conclusions: The psychological and socio-economic effects of COVID-19 lockdown significantly affected quality of life. Population will benefit from economic subsidies, psychotherapy and information, communication and technology (ICT) skills for learning and working from home.