scholarly journals The impact of COVID-19 on the mental health of Canadian children and youth

FACETS ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 1628-1648
Author(s):  
Tracy Vaillancourt ◽  
Peter Szatmari ◽  
Katholiki Georgiades ◽  
Amanda Krygsman

Children and youth flourish in environments that are predictable, safe, and structured. The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted these protective factors making it difficult for children and youth to adapt and thrive. Pandemic-related school closures, family stress, and trauma have led to increases in mental health problems in some children and youth, an area of health that was already in crisis well before COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic. Because mental health problems early in life are associated with significant impairment across family, social, and academic domains, immediate measures are needed to mitigate the potential for long-term sequalae. Now more than ever, Canada needs a national mental health strategy that is delivered in the context in which children and youth are most easily accessible—schools. This strategy should provide coordinated care across sectors in a stepped care framework and across a full continuum of mental health supports spanning promotion, prevention, early intervention, and treatment. In parallel, we must invest in a comprehensive population-based follow-up of Statistics Canada’s Canadian Health Survey on Children and Youth so that accurate information about how the pandemic is affecting all Canadian children and youth can be obtained. It is time the Canadian government prioritizes the mental health of children and youth in its management of the pandemic and beyond.

2020 ◽  
pp. ebmental-2020-300167
Author(s):  
Peter Irving ◽  
Kevin Barrett ◽  
Daniel Tang ◽  
Monica Nijher ◽  
Simon de Lusignan

IntroductionPeople with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are at increased risk of pneumonia and herpes zoster, yet other common infection types have not been explored. Anxiety and depression are more prevalent in IBD; however, the impact of these conditions on primary care healthcare use in IBD is not known.Methods and analysisWe will perform two retrospective studies using a large English population-based primary care cohort to compare the following outcomes in people with IBD and matched controls: incident infections (Study 1) and prevalent mental health problems and healthcare use, overall and in those with and without mental health problems (Study 2). All adults registered with general practices contributing to Royal College of General Practitioners Research and Surveillance Centre database between 1 January 2014 and 1 January 2019 are eligible. Infection outcomes comprise the incidence of common infections (upper respiratory tract infections, pneumonia, acute bronchitis, influenza and influenza-like illnesses, skin infections, herpes simplex and herpes zoster infections, genital infections, urinary tract infections and gastrointestinal infections) and any viral infection. Mental health and healthcare use outcomes are: prevalence of depressive episodes; anxiety episodes; recurrent depression; rates of primary care and emergency secondary care visits; primary-care issued sick notes (reflecting time off work). Analyses will be adjusted for sociodemographic factors recorded in the primary care record.DiscussionThese studies will quantify the infection risk in IBD, the excess burden of anxiety and depression in a population-based IBD cohort, and the impact of mental health conditions on healthcare use and time off work. Greater understanding and awareness of infection risk and common mental health issues will benefit people with IBD and healthcare practitioners and will guide policy makers as allocation of resource may be guided by the real-world information produced by these studies.Trial registration numberNCT03836612.


Author(s):  
Vahid Ranaei ◽  
Zahra Pilevar ◽  
Teamur Aghamolaei

Context: The emerging 2019-nCoV outbreak has involved almost all countries worldwide. Although the timely dissemination of clear and accurate information on threats of the disease might cause panic, it is needed for rapid adoption and implementation of prevention and control measures. From the early stages of outbreaks, the behavioral responses and public risk perception should be carefully monitored for further policies and corrective measures. Evidence Acquisition: In the current narrative review article, the psychological and behavioral responses are reviewed after an introduction to the risk perception and role of social and personal behavioral changes in the 2019-nCoV outbreak. Additionally, the impact of public perception on mental health problems and containment of the outbreak is discussed. Results: The consequences of the outbreak affect both infected and non-infected people in communities. People may experience loneliness, fear of catching the disease, and loss of loved ones during the outbreak. The timely understanding of the situation, implementation of urgent psychological interventions, and emotional supports are necessary to encourage people to fight this long-term outbreak and prevent subsequent mental health problems. Conclusions: High self-control and public perception can mediate the associated psychological impacts of stressful conditions in outbreaks.


Work ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Annika Lexén ◽  
Maria Emmelin ◽  
Lars Hansson ◽  
Bengt Svensson ◽  
Susann Porter ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND: Lack of mental health literacy among rehabilitation professionals and employers in the return-to-work of persons with mental health problems resulted in the development of a three-day group training program, the Support to Employers from rehabilitation Actors about Mental health (SEAM) intervention. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the impact of SEAM on rehabilitation professionals’ knowledge and beliefs, attitudes, and supporting behaviors towards people with mental health problems and employers as part of the return-to-work process. METHODS: In this longitudinal study, 94 rehabilitation professionals were included. Data were collected prior to (T1), immediately after (T2) and 6 months after SEAM training (T3) using knowledge and attitude scales and a questionnaire on supporting behaviors. SEAM includes training in Mental Health First Aid, presentations and discussions on current research on work and mental health, and strategies and communication guidelines to use when meeting service users and employers as part of the return-to-work of persons with mental health problems. SEAM also includes a homepage with targeted employer information. Data were analyzed using non-parametric statistics. RESULTS: SEAM significantly increased rehabilitation professionals’ knowledge of mental health (T1-T2: z = –2.037, p = 0.042; T2-T3: z = –5.093, p = 0.001), and improved their attitudes towards persons with mental health problems (T1-T2: z = 4.984, p = 0.001). Professionals (50–60%) also estimated that they had increased their use of supporting strategies towards service users and employers. CONCLUSIONS: The study suggests that SEAM can increase mental health literacy among rehabilitation professionals and lead to a greater focus on service users’ resources and work ability, as well as on employers’ support needs.


Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 41
Author(s):  
Farinaz Havaei

Workplace violence is a prevalent phenomenon in healthcare, particularly among nursing professionals. Exposure to workplace violence may be direct through firsthand involvement, indirect through secondhand witnessing, or both. Even though implications for victims of workplace violence have been well-studied, less is known about the various types of exposure and their effects on nurse mental health. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of workplace-violence exposure types on the mental health of nurses, while accounting for the intensity of the incident/s. This study employs an exploratory correlational design with survey methods. Nurses from British Columbia (BC), Canada, were invited by the provincial nurses’ union to complete an electronic survey in Fall 2019. A total of 2958 responses from direct-care nurses in acute-care settings were analyzed using logistic regression. The results showed that mental-health problems increased with cumulative exposure; even though nurses with solely indirect exposure to workplace violence did not report greater mental-health problems, those experiencing solely direct exposure, or both direct and indirect exposure, were two to four times more likely to report high levels of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression and burnout compared to their counterparts with no exposure. There is an urgent need for better mental-health support, prevention policies and practices that take into account the type of workplace-violence exposure.


Children ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 119
Author(s):  
Norhafizah Sahril ◽  
Noor Ani Ahmad ◽  
Idayu Badilla Idris ◽  
Rajini Sooryanarayana ◽  
Mohamad Aznuddin Abd Razak

Mental health problems are a major public health issue, particularly among children. They impair children’s development, academic achievement, and ability to live a productive life. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with mental health problems among children aged 5 to 15 years old in Malaysia. Data from the National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2015 were analyzed. A validated Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used. The overall prevalence of mental health problems among children in Malaysia was 11.1%. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that for every year increment in age, mental health problems decreased by 5%. Further analysis found that children who had fathers with a non-formal education and worked in the private sector, had parents who were widowed or divorced, and had either parent with mental health problems were more likely to have mental health problems themselves. Children from the lower socioeconomic group and who had either parent with mental health problems had higher odds of having mental health problems in Malaysia.


BJPsych Open ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip J. Batterham ◽  
Alison L. Calear ◽  
Matthew Sunderland ◽  
Natacha Carragher ◽  
Jacqueline L. Brewer

BackgroundCommunity-based screening for mental health problems may increase service use through feedback to individuals about their severity of symptoms and provision of contacts for appropriate services.AimsThe effect of symptom feedback on service use was assessed. Secondary outcomes included symptom change and study attrition.MethodUsing online recruitment, 2773 participants completed a comprehensive survey including screening for depression (n=1366) or social anxiety (n=1407). Across these two versions, approximately half (n=1342) of the participants were then randomly allocated to receive tailored feedback. Participants were reassessed after 3 months (Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ANZCTR12614000324617).ResultsA negative effect of providing social anxiety feedback to individuals was observed, with significant reductions in professional service use. Greater attrition and lower intentions to seek help were also observed after feedback.ConclusionsOnline mental health screening with feedback is not effective for promoting professional service use. Alternative models of online screening require further investigation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Collins-McGroarty J ◽  
Faulkes-Sharrock E ◽  
Wilkes R

Objective: Clients with moderate intellectual disabilities are reported to struggle with ongoing mental health problems, especially around emotional and behavioral issues around sensitive topics like their sexuality, which is not always easy to communicate through traditional talking therapies for this client group, therefore a group of individuals were selected to determine the impact of a newer energy psychotherapy technique called Kinetic Shift Therapy (KS) alongside Mindfulness based therapy (MBT) which is utilized more, however with limited published research to determine the positive impact on the symptoms and behaviors that affect this client group.


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