BACKGROUND
The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the health and mental health of the general population, including Latino cancer patients with unique health, emotional, and socioeconomic concerns.
OBJECTIVE
To describe mental health professionals’ clinical practice and mental healthcare care delivery to Latino cancer patients in the US, Latin America, and Spain during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020 and 2021).
METHODS
Mental healthcare practitioners treating Latino cancer patients were invited to complete a web-based survey in two waves (first wave: May-July 2020; second wave: March-July 2021). Two independent samples completed the web-based surveys.
RESULTS
Of the samples of clinicians (approximately first n=80 and second n=146 waves), most reported decreased productivity in clinical activities, especially outpatient care (50% median decrease for 2020 and 30% median decrease for 2021). In 2020, one-fourth (23.7%) completely stopped treating patients, and in 2021, only 3.4% were not treating in person. Although half (51.3%) still met patients in person in 2020, and two-thirds (67.8%) in 2021, 76.9% reported having remote sessions with patients in 2020 and 93.8% in 2021. Factors associated with the delivery of sessions via video were gender and type of patient population and rural/urban location. Factors associated with delivering care via phone were gender, country economy, type of primary clinical work site, and patient age group, and patient socioeconomic status.
CONCLUSIONS
During the worldwide COVID-19 crisis, for Latinos with cancer, appointments for in-person mental health treatment stopped, were reduced, or transformed to remote care. There were indications of socioeconomic disparities in telehealth access. Studies should address remote mental healthcare implementation with Latino cancer patients at the individual, provider, and healthcare system levels and determine the eHealth/telehealth training needs of providers.