Course of well-being and mental health in Switzerland during the COVID-19 pandemic. results of a national survey within the framework of the COH-FIT study

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the mental health of the Swiss population. Methods: This study analyzed data from the Collaborative Outcome study on Health and Functioning during Infection Times (COH-FIT) across three pandemic waves: T1 (April–June 2020), T2 (July–December 2020) or T3 (January–June 2021). Each participant participated only once, during one of these three waves. Participants reported their subjective well-being and mental health status for the two weeks prior to the pandemic (pre-pandemic baseline) and during their respective pandemic wave. Subjective well-being was assessed using the World Health Organization Well-Being Index (WHO-5) from 4,037 participants, while mental health was measured via the P-score, completed by 3,375 participants. The WHO-5 ranges from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating better well-being, while the P-score also ranges from 0 to 100 whereas higher scores represent greater levels of perceived burden across five domains of mental health. Pre- and intra-pandemic differences were analyzed using Wilcoxon tests and ANOVA, with subgroup analyses across seven Swiss regions utilizing the Kruskal-Wallis test. Results: Participants had a mean age of 45.6 years (61.9% female). Results showed a substantial decline in well-being during the pandemic, with average WHO-5 scores decreasing from 75.3 pre-pandemic, to 66.5 during the first wave, 69.1 during the second, and 65.1 during the third, representing relative reductions of 11.7%, 8.2%, and 13.5%. The percentage of participants at risk for depression (WHO-5 <50) peaked during the third wave at 19.8%, up from 10.0% pre-pandemic. Mental health burden, as measured by the P-score, increased significantly during the first wave (from 20.6 to 27.3, +32.5%), and remained elevated across the two subsequent waves, with no significant recovery observed. Wilcoxon tests indicated significant differences between pre-pandemic and intra-pandemic WHO-5 and P-scores, with the largest effect sizes during the third wave (r = 0.652 for WHO-5; r = 0.487 for P-score). ANOVA showed significant intra-pandemic differences in WHO-5 across waves (p < 0.001), with improvements noted in the second wave. However, no intra-pandemic differences in P-scores were found (p = 0.298). Regional analyses revealed that Ticino, the Lake Geneva region, and Northwestern Switzerland experienced the most pronounced declines in well-being and increases in mental health burden. In contrast, Espace Mittelland and Eastern Switzerland experienced a less severe impact. Discussion: Overall, these findings highlight the considerable and lasting impact of COVID-19 on mental health in Switzerland, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions, particularly in the most affected regions.

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Subject (DDC)

610 - Medizin und Gesundheit

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ISBN

ISSN

1664-0640

Language

English

Created during FHNW affiliation

Yes

Strategic action fields FHNW

Publication status

Published

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Peer review of the complete publication

Open access category

Gold

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Citation

Huber, C. G., Billian, J., Ziltener, T., Conus, P., von Känel, R., Hasler, G., Sehli, J., Mosina, A., Krinitski, D., Seifritz, E., Kowalinski, E., Gothuey, I., Marian, J., Lang, U. E., Thompson, T., Solmi, M., Correll, C. U., Heuss, S., & Schneeberger, A. R. (2026). Course of well-being and mental health in Switzerland during the COVID-19 pandemic. results of a national survey within the framework of the COH-FIT study. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 16. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1642325

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