Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health and family situation of clinically referred children and adolescents in Switzerland: results of a survey among mental health care professionals after 1 year of COVID-19

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental well-being of clinically referred children and adolescents and on their families from the perspective of mental health care professionals in Switzerland during the first year of the pandemic. Psychiatrists and psychologists for children and adolescents participated in an anonymous survey conducted online in April/May 2021. The survey was completed by 454 mental health care professionals, most of them working in outpatient clinics for child and adolescent psychiatry or in independent practices. Most participants indicated an important increase of referrals for depression (86.8% of respondents), anxiety disorders (81.5%), crisis interventions (76.2%), psychosomatic disorders (66.1%), suicidality (63.8%), and behavioral addictions, e.g., excessive gaming (64.6%). In contrast, referrals or treatment demands for disorders such as autism spectrum disorder or psychosis showed no substantial change or a slight decrease, respectively. According to 69% of respondents, patients experienced the highest psychological burden in January/February/March 2021. Family problems very frequently reported by mental health professionals were parents’ worries about loneliness/isolation of the child (49%), child’s education and academic future (33%), increased media use due to missing options of recreational activities (37.6%), as well as multiple stresses of mothers (36.3%). To conclude, the pandemic has substantially changed the pattern of disorders and the number of clinical referrals of children and adolescents with mental health problems, which has serious consequences for the treatment supply in Switzerland.

The Ketogenic Diet in Children with Epilepsy: A Focus on Parental Stress and Family Compliance

“…This disagreement could be due to the socio-economic changes that have occurred over the last 20 years and to the different perception of the quality of life of the families [ 28 , 29 ]. Furthermore, in this regard, we should also consider that our study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, and this may have been an additional factor that impacted parental stress [ 30 , 31 , 32 ]. Some recent research showed that the COVID-19 pandemic can be a source of parental stress in parents of children and adolescents with various neuropsychiatric conditions, including epilepsy [ 33 , 34 ].…”

Impact of COVID-19 on Neuropsychiatric Disorders

“…Indeed, children with neurodevelopmental disorders experienced an increase in emotional difficulties and conduct problems as well as a decrease in prosocial behaviors during the pandemic [ 40 ]. Depression and anxiety among children and their parents with ASD have increased as reported by studies in different countries such as the US and Switzerland [ 41 , 42 ]. Among children with neurodevelopmental disorders studied in the UK, female children with ASD experienced the highest emotional symptoms [ 40 ].…”

A nationwide questionnaire survey of physicians regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on patients and treatment system of psychosomatic medicine

“…The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on patients with psychosomatic disorders has been noted in several studies. A study of psychiatrists and psychologists for children and adolescents reported an increase in patients with depression, anxiety disorders, and psychosomatic disorders [ 2 ]. A population study found an association between the COVID-19 pandemic and psychosomatic symptoms [ 3 ].…”