We know that recipes for the functioning of society include diligent and ambitious citizens. But how do you create such an individual? The answer should include young people who feel supported. Without supporting mental health through the process, we cannot have an equally prepared population to contribute to society. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic is disproportionately affecting the mental health of our youth. In addition to COVID-19, the mental health crisis is the second pandemic our youth are currently facing. Parliamentarians must prioritize mental health.
Although temporarily needed to contain the COVID-19 case, social isolation from long-term school closures has created a new national disaster. In October 2021, the American Academy of Pediatrics declared a national emergency for the mental health of children more than a year after the pandemic. The numbers are increasing, from anxiety, depression, suicidal behavior, eating disorders to other dysfunctions. According to a survey of adolescent behavior and experience at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 37% of public and private high school students reported regular mental health problems during a pandemic.
This mental health crisis manifests itself in countless ways, in addition to the sparse choices for mental and behavioral health care needs. For example, we know that mental health disorders are one of the most important risk factors for suicide. According to the recent Weekly Incidence and Mortality Report (MMWR) published by the CDC, emergency department visits from February 21, 2021 to March 20, 2021 on suspicion of attempted suicide were for girls aged 12 to 17 years. 2019. National emergency departments bring teens daily due to suicide attempts, as well as suicide attempts and other mental health crises, compared to the same period in 2019. .. Unfortunately, these patients may have to wait days there until a bed is available in the inpatient’s psychiatric unit.
Isolation and lack of structure during the pandemic also caused an increase in adolescents suffering from new or recurrent eating disorders. Several studies have reported an increase in eating disorders in hospitals since the onset of the pandemic. Hospitalist Notice what we saw an increase of 40%. Although inpatient teams are skilled in addressing these patients with acute medical needs, they often require intensive care for continuous or semi-inpatients. Similar to the waiting times patients face for mental health care in emergency departments across the country, patients struggling with eating disorders are also kept waiting in hospitals for weeks before being placed in appropriate treatment facilities. There is a possibility.
Increasing access to mental health and behavioral health services can take many forms. Telemedicine is monumental in that it provides more support to children in need of frequent treatment sessions, and increased reimbursement for such services may help expand these opportunities. there is. Providing mental health crisis training to school counselors can be an important tool for schools to use when children present these needs at school. Increasing funding for children’s mental health clinicians in community clinics makes it difficult for primary care providers to meet their patients’ mental health needs within the time constraints for acute visits. Will help.
Untreated or untreated mental health-related disorders in childhood are associated with increased unemployment, reduced income, and an overall decline in the ability to make a meaningful contribution to society. Thankfully, Connecticut’s latest legislative session focused primarily on this issue with the passage of three important mental health bills. One such bill, HouseBill5001, is a child’s mental health law that expands school services, insurance coverage, and resources for behavioral health providers among other initiatives. It aims to address the mental health crisis. It is advisable to note similar bills to support these initiatives and ask your representatives for their coveted support. Congressmen must continue to advocate the expansion of mental health services for our youth.
Anna Winchester DO lives in Glastonbury.
