The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children's mental health. by

Moving forward after the pandemic.

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-07 15:13:50 UTC

In this ted talk, Dr. Halldorsdottir (2022) discusses the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic had on adolescents while reflecting on her own experiences. She discussed what must be done to "save" our future generation from severe mental health problems.

NHS guidance and support

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-07 15:28:50 UTC

Following the pandemic, the NHS launched an 'every mind matters' campaign which included support and guidance for parents and carers regarding children's mental health. The campaign includes, signs that their child is struggling as well as ways to support them and signposts to experts and organisations. This has allowed educators to further support parents of children who's mental health has been negatively impacted by the pandemic.

Mental health support pre-pandemic

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-07 15:55:01 UTC

Mental health issues in children was already becoming a concern, before the COVID-19 pandemic. The document attached (Department of Health and Social Care and Department for Education, 2018) highlighted an increase in mental health disorders among children to 1 in 10. The report outlines various proposals, including further training for safeguarding leaders in schools and the composition of mental health support teams in schools. The report supports the personal beliefs of educators that children's mental health has been a concern for many years now and therefore the pandemic did not create these issues but amplified them.

NHS report - statistics for supporting children after the pandemic.

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-07 16:16:04 UTC

The NHS response to the increase in children's mental health issues post-pandemic is ahead of schedule, with over 2.4 million children receiving support from the NHS (NHS, 2022).

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-12 11:46:59 UTC

The rise in mental health care needs during the COVID-19 pandemic may potentially be attributed to multiple factors including isolation, collective and individual losses, and economic downturn (Gallardo et. al, 2022 and Lu and Lin, 2021). The closure of primary schools meant that many children also lost access to mental health interventions.

Teacher wellbeing

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-12 11:58:19 UTC

Teacher wellbeing also reduced significantly during the pandemic. "Teachers’ health is not only important to themselves" but for the children they teach (Sigursteinsdottir and Rafnsdottir, 2022). Educators cannot expect children's mental health to stay the same if they are not taking care of their own during the pandemic.

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-12 11:59:54 UTC

"There is a need for cognitive tools that can adapt to virtual learning that address social, emotional… skills along with self-regulation skills that can benefit social development during such events and periods of isolation for school-aged children" (Miller, 2023).

The child's voice

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-12 12:58:54 UTC

Lacey et. al (2023) carried out a longitudinal study which focused on children's voice and feelings about the pandemic. The study concluded that the pandemic had a 'detrimental' impact on children's emotional and social well-being, with one child describing lockdown as 'empty time'. Whilst educators witness the negative impacts of the pandemic daily, the study is unique due to the limited research currently available which focuses on the perspective of children.

A limitation of research

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-12 14:59:49 UTC

Many studies focusing on the impact of mental health on primary children, has limitations. Mental health data was limited at the beginning of the pandemic, as many educators and researchers were initially unaware of the increase in mental health issues caused by the pandemic. Educators became focused on policy and academic support, and failed to identify the mental health struggles of most pupils.

Recommendations post-pandemic

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-12 15:23:34 UTC

The department for Education acknowledges educators concerns regarding an increase in mental health issues among children (DfE, 2022). Moving forward, they proposed targeted support and interventions to support children experiencing heightened mental health issues.

Key statistics - government report.

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-12 17:02:54 UTC

The rates of 'probable mental disorders' in children, between 2017 and 2021, increased from 11.6% to 17.4% (Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, 2020). The report also states that children who had not previously been identified as struggling with their mental health showed a greater decline than those with pre-existing conditions. Children have since reported that they are now struggling to access mental health support, due to increased waiting lists and demand.

statistics

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-12 19:46:07 UTC

suicide related concerns for children ages 5-12 increased by 133.5% (Ridout et. al, 2017).
1 in 6 five to sixteen year olds were identified as having a mental health disorder, an increase from 1 in 9 pre-pandemic (NHS digital, 2020)
40% rise in mental health disorders in children with disabilities (Kamenetz, 2020)

Contradicting research

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-12 19:58:28 UTC

Martineau and Bakopoulou (2023)'s research, is one of the few pieces of research published which found that mental health issues depended on individual contexts, such as home life, rather than the pandemic in general. The lockdown saw children 'become more resilient', and the study even acknowledges that some children found the new style of teaching more beneficial, due to the smaller groups and the easing of the curriculum.

pre-covid research

amyleighpierrepo1 — 2024-01-12 20:10:56 UTC

Before the pandemic, primary children's mental health was being researched, to support children's access to interventions and support.

Soneson et. al (2018) and Fenella (2012) explored the possible implementation of school-based mental health screening, which would support children struggling. Similarly, Goldberg et. al (2018) and Glazzard (2019) suggested a whole-school approach to mental health would have normalise discussions and support children with mental health issues. These approaches mirror those that are now being suggested by researcher, post covid.