THE DOCTOR IS IN
OP-ED BY DR. ADIL MANZOOR
It is beyond any argument that there’s a mental health crisis among children. This crisis has caught the eye and worry of many, and rightfully so. Whenever any reference is to be made about the children’s mental crisis, the last two years have been brought to the fore. The coronavirus pandemic has dominated the medical landscape for more than two years now, wreaking all sorts of damage on its way.
It is, therefore, understandable that many people blame most of the health crises we experience now on the coronavirus. They aren’t totally wrong, either, considering just how many serious health complications the coronavirus has caused. However, one health crisis that cannot be blamed on the coronavirus is children’s mental health.
Did the coronavirus make the children’s mental health crisis worse? Yes, absolutely. But did the coronavirus cause the children’s mental health crisis? No, not even close.
According to estimates quoted by UNICEF, more than 1 in 7 adolescents between the ages of 10 and 19 is estimated to live with a diagnosed mental disorder. This is bad, and one of the reasons for this is the coronavirus pandemic. Many adolescents lost loved ones, were locked out of schools, had their social relations impaired, and had their families enter financial difficulties. So it’s not really surprising that the mental health figures in the 10-19 age bracket are that bad.
Another interesting but disturbing fact to consider is that 1 in 5 children have a mental, emotional, or behavioral disorder. These disorders include anxiety, depression, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), disruptive behavior disorder, and Tourette’s syndrome. To worsen matters, only about 20 percent of children with these disorders receive care from a specialized mental health care provider.
This report is from CDC studies. I called the report “interesting and disturbing.” It’s fair to say the disturbing part is clear for all to see, but why interesting? Well, the CDC found this out before the pandemic hit. Do you get where I’m going with this?
It is true that there’s a mental health crisis among children, but saying the pandemic caused this crisis is wildly inaccurate. If anything, the coronavirus pandemic only made the existing crisis worse.
The implication of this is simple. If this mental health crisis among children predated the coronavirus, then the end of the pandemic will not necessarily mean the end of the crisis. It’s a call to action that we all desperately need for the sake of our children.
For a long time now, the mental health of children has not been taken with the utmost seriousness it deserves. The American Psychological Association reported that 4,000 out of the over 100,000 U.S. clinical psychologists are child and adolescent clinicians – that’s 4%. 4%!
It’s not any better in schools too. According to the National Association of School Psychologists, a ratio of 1 school psychologist per 500 students is recommended. Currently, though, the ratio is 1 per 1,211 students.
We need to take children’s mental health more seriously. Enough with blaming the coronavirus for the pandemic. If we keep doing that, then we’re never getting out of this crisis. That’s the sad reality.
This article was written by Dr. Adil Manzoor DO, a Board Certified Internist & Board Eligible Pediatrician, who works as a Hospitalist, and Emergency Room Physician. He is also the current President of Garden State Street Medicine, a non-profit organization whose sole purpose is to provide free preventive and acute urgent care services for the homeless. He is also the co-founder of his own unique medical practice Mobile Medicine NJ.
References
- https://www.apa.org/monitor/2022/01/special-childrens-mental-health
- https://www.cdc.gov/childrensmentalhealth/access.html
- https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/impact-covid-19-poor-mental-health-children-and-young-people-tip-iceberg
- https://reliefweb.int/report/world/covid-19-five-crises-facing-children-after-2-years-pandemic
