Pastoral Care and Mental Health in Post-Pandemic South Africa
A Narrative Review Exploring New Ways to Serve Those in Our Care
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 16901465 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Janice Moodley (0000-0002-8323-6152), Rabson Hove (0009-0008-7179-4190) |
| Year | 2023 |
| Volume | 14 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 477 |
| Publication date | 2023-04-03 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Religions (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/rel14040477 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 33 |
COVID-19 has had severe consequences for congregants worldwide. During the period of lockdown regulations, congregants were isolated from pastoral care when such care was most needed. Social distancing, wearing masks, and other regulations changed how we worshiped, fellowshipped, discipled, counselled, comforted, and loved those in our care. The role of pastoral care as a pillar of mental well-being became overwhelmingly evident as the dying, the grieving, the physically and mentally ill, the abused, the starving, the destitute, and the vulnerable were isolated and alienated. The pandemic has had untold consequences on congregant mental health, especially in resource-poor contexts in South Africa, where adequate psychological services cannot cope with needs. This article uses the narrative approach to explore the possible role pastoral care can play in addressing the exacerbation of mental health issues post-pandemic in South Africa. The state of psychological services in South Africa is explored in order to contextualise the need for innovative ideas to address the complexity of mental health issues in South Africa. Recommendations are made for how pastoral care may be utilised to alleviate the mental health crisis that has emerged following the pandemic at an individual and community level. Hopefully, this article will foster critical dialogue between theological and psychological scholarship for the purposes of alleviating the complex mental health issues that persist in South Africa and have been exacerbated by the pandemic
Job loss and mental health during the Covid-19 lockdown
Child and Family Outcomes Following Pandemics
Impact of Covid-19 pandemic on mental health
Writing narrative style literature reviews
How Covid-19 shaped mental health
Past Epidemics, Natural Disasters, Covid19, and Mental Health
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The Impact of Covid-19 and Religious Restrictions on the Well-Being of Ghanaian Christians
Religion and the Covid-19 Pandemic in Southern Africa
The Wiley‐Blackwell Companion to Practical Theology
Writing Narrative Literature Reviews
Promoting mental health in community and research settings during Covid ‐19
The Covid-19 Disappeared
Impact of Covid-19 lockdown and link to women and children’s experiences of violence in the home in South Africa
Grieving During the Covid-19 Pandemic
The pastoral presence in absence
Distance no impediment for funerals
Mental health and Covid-19 in South Africa
Emotions and Change in Spiritual Care
Models of Engaged Scholarship
Pastoral Ministry in Unsettled Times
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |