scholarly journals Deficits in planned hospital care for vulnerable adolescents in England during the COVID-19 pandemic: analysis of linked administrative data

Author(s):  
Louise Mc Grath-Lone ◽  
David Etoori ◽  
Ruth Gilbert ◽  
Katie Harron ◽  
Jenny Woodman ◽  
...  

Planned hospital care (outpatient attendances and planned hospital admissions) was disrupted during the pandemic, but we lack evidence on which groups of young people were most impacted. We aimed to describe differences in planned care for vulnerable adolescents receiving children's social care (CSC) services or special educational needs (SEN) support during the pandemic, relative to their peers. Using the ECHILD Database (linked de-identified administrative health, education and social care records for all children in England), we examined changes in planned hospital care from 23 March to 31 December 2020 for secondary school pupils in Years 7 to 11 (N=3,030,235). There were large deficits in planned care for adolescents overall, which disproportionately affected the 21% receiving SEN support or CSC services who bore 25% of the outpatient attendance deficit and 37% of the planned admissions deficit. These findings indicate a need for targeted catch-up funding and resources, particularly for vulnerable groups.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Russell Viner ◽  
Simon Russell ◽  
Rosella Saulle ◽  
Helen Croker ◽  
Claire Stansfeld ◽  
...  

AbstractBackgroundThe well-documented links between education and health mean that school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic are likely to be associated with significant health harms to children and young people (CYP). A systematic review of the evidence is needed to inform policy decisions around school closures and re-openings during the pandemic.MethodsWe undertook a high-quality systematic review of observational quantitative studies (published or preprint) of the impacts of school closures (for any reason) on the health, wellbeing and educational outcomes of CYP, excluding impacts of closure on transmission of infection (PROSPERO CRD42020181658). We used a machine learning approach for screening articles, with decisions on inclusion and data extraction performed independently by 2 researchers. Quality was assessed for study type. A narrative synthesis of results was undertaken as data did not allow meta-analysis.Results16,817 records were screened, of which 151 were reviewed in full-text and 72 studies were included from 20 countries. 33% were cohort studies using historical control periods; 19% pre-post studies; and 46% cross-sectional studies which assessed change by comparison with population reference data. 63% were high-quality, 25% medium-quality and 13% low-quality. Cause of closure in all studies was the first COVID-19 pandemic wave with the exception of 5 influenza studies and 1 teacher strike.27 studies concerning mental health identified considerable impacts across emotional, behavioural and restlessness/inattention problems; 18-60% of CYP scored above risk thresholds for distress, particularly anxiety and depressive symptoms. Two studies reported non-significant rises in suicide rates. Self-harm and psychiatric attendances were markedly reduced, indicating a rise in unmet mental health need. Child protection referrals fell 27-39%, with a halving of the expected number of referrals originating in schools.19 studies concerning health service use showed marked reductions in emergency department (ED) presentations and hospital admissions, with evidence of delayed presentations and potential widening of inequalities in vaccination coverage. Data suggested marked rises in screen-time and social media use and reductions in physical activity however data on sleep and diet were inconclusive. Available data suggested likely higher harms in CYP from more deprived populations.ConclusionsSchool closures as part of broader social distancing measures are associated with considerable harms to CYP health and wellbeing. Available data are short-term and longer-term harms are likely to be magnified by further school closures. Data are urgently needed on longer-term impacts using strong research designs, particularly amongst vulnerable groups. These findings are important for policy-makers seeking to balance the risks of transmission through school-aged children with the harms of closing schools.


2020 ◽  
pp. 177-189
Author(s):  
Miłosz Wawrzyniec Romaniuk

The paper presents the results of research on the level of self-esteem of participants of high seas cruises that implement the idea of sail training and are a non-standard form of informal education. The study involved 124 people, including 65 girls and 59 boys aged 13 to 18 years old, who can be considered as youth with special educational needs. They were participants of the Krzysztof Baranowski School Under Sails in 2015 and 2016, the cruise of the 42nd General Secondary School in Warsaw in 2016 and the Catholic School Under Sails in 2017. The results show a statistically significant increase in the level of self-esteem measured with the SES scale. The level of self-esteem of participants after the cruise is significantly higher than that of their peers from standardisation groups. It can be assumed that various types of Schools Under Sails are an attractive way to educate young people.


1997 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 341-358 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret M. Oladapo ◽  
William R. Brieger

Adolescents are subject to many life changes as their secondary sexual characteristics emerge. Contrary to parents' and society's wishes, these young people are more sexually active then previous generations and thus at greater risk of unwanted pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, and related problems. Adolescents enrolled in school have the potential opportunity to learn ways to prevent these reproductive and sexual health problems, but there is concern whether schools are living up to this challenge. Therefore, this study was designed to learn whether adolescents in secondary school in the Ondo State capital of Akure have reproductive health education and are practicing healthy sexual behaviors. The study was based on a sample of six of the twenty-eight secondary schools in Akure that fell under the jurisdiction of the Ondo State Post-Primary Schools' Management Board. Focus was placed on pupils in the final years of both Junior Secondary School (JSS 3) and Senior Secondary School (SSS 3). Overall, 30 percent of the young people reported having sexual intercourse: 21 percent of females and 38 percent of males. Also 39 percent in SSS 3 reported having had sex compared to 21 percent in JSS 3. Forty percent of students in coeducational school compared to 19 percent in boy's school and 8 percent in girl's school had sex. Respondents averaged only 11 points on a 33-point scale of reproductive health knowledge. Students in the senior classes and those in single sex schools scored higher. The mass media was stated to be the major source of reproductive health knowledge; only one-third reported that they had actually talked with someone about their reproductive health concerns. Attitudes toward pre-marital sex were more favorable among male students, pupils in mixed sex schools and those whose parents had lower levels of education. These findings suggest not only that the schools must take a more active role in providing reproductive health education, but that this should be done in the junior secondary years before most pupils become sexually active.


Symmetry ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 1495
Author(s):  
Rasha Hafidh ◽  
Mhd Saeed Sharif ◽  
Ali H. Al-Bayatti ◽  
Ahmed S. Alfakeeh ◽  
Madini O. Alassafi ◽  
...  

There is a significant need for a computer-aided modeling, effective information analysis and ontology knowledge base models to support both special needs children and care providers. As this research work correlated to the symmetry scope, it proposes an innovative generic smart knowledge-based “School Care Coordination System” (SCCS), which is established on a novel holistic six-layered data management model. The development of the Smart-SCCS adopts a methodology of ontology engineering to transform the given theoretical unstructured special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) code of practice into a comprehensive knowledge representation and reasoning system. The intended purpose is to deliver a system that can coordinate and bring together education, health and social care services into a single application to meet the needs of children and young people (CYP) with SEND. Moreover, it enables coordination, integration and monitoring of education, health and social care activities between different actors (formal, informal and CYP in the education sector) involved in the school care process network to provide personalized care interventions based on a predefined care plan. The developed ontology knowledge-based model has been proven efficient and solved the enormous difficulties faced by schools and local authorities on a daily basis. It enabled the coordination of care and integration of information for CYP from different departments in health, social care and education. The developed model has received significant attention with great feedback from all the schools and the local authorities involved, showing its efficiency and robustness.


2020 ◽  
pp. 329-341
Author(s):  
Grazia Romanazzi

Freedom, autonomy and responsibility are the ends of every educational process, especially in the modern society: globalized, rapid, in transformation; society in which each one of us is called to make numerous choices. Therefore, it is urgent to educate to choose and educate to the choice, so that young people can emancipate themselves from possible conditionings. To this end, the Montessori method represents a privileged way: child is free to choose his own activity and learns "to do by himself" soon; the teacher prepares the environment and the materials that allow the student to satisfy the educational needs of each period of inner development. Then, Montessori gives importance to adolescence because it is during this period that grows the social man. Consequently, it is important to reform the secondary school in order to acquire the autonomy that each student will apply to the subsequent school grades and to all areas of life


2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dabesaki Mac-Ikemenjima

There is growing interest in the development of measures and indexes of youth wellbeing. However, there has been a limited discussion on indicators to measure and select them. This paper reports on the results of a qualitative study on the selection of indicators to measure the wellbeing of young people in South Africa, and reflects on the relevance of the content of their values in choosing indicators for measuring their wellbeing. The data used in this analysis is based on telephone (9) and email (6) interviews conducted with 15 young people (male=5, female=10) aged 22 to 32 from five South African cities during July 2010. In the interviews, participants were asked to identify five issues they considered important to their lives, after which they were asked to rank them in order of importance. The issues indicated by the participants are described and discussed in six dimensions: economic, relationships, spiritual and health, education, time use and material. The indicators developed from this study are discussed in terms of their relevance for use in a measure of youth wellbeing in South Africa.


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