Physical activity, screen time and psychological well-being during COVID-19 in disabled children

Abstract

Vulnerable groups, such as children and adolescents, have been affected by quarantine, especially those with disabilities. This has been amplified by the worldwide measures that were implemented in many countries like school closures and social distancing in order to control the spread of COVID-19. However, the consequences of such procedures on physical disability, screen time and psychological well-being among disabled children are not clear. This study investigates the impact of COVID-19 on physical disability, screen time and psychological well-being among Jordanian children with disabilities in the (5-11) age range. A total of 119 parents with disabled children between (5-11) years of age were asked to fill out a survey that included a set of questions to measure their children's physical disability, screen time and psychological well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic. Being irritable (65.6%), dependent on us (63.1%), bored (62.2%), nervous (58.8%), reluctant (57.1%), worried when one of us leaves the house (54.4%) and cried easily (54.4%) were the most frequently reported symptoms by parents during the COVID-19 pandemic. They reported that screen time of ≥120 minutes a day was shown among 22.7% of disabled children and 44.5% of disabled children performed <30 minutes a day of physical activity. ≤8 hours of sleep per night was reported by 51.3% of the parents with disabled children during COVID-19. Disabled persons and their parents should have access to all kinds of facilities, services and information related to COVID-19. Governments may provide free applications to the parents of disabled children to get psychological support easily and conveniently during such difficult times. Moreover, parents of disabled children could be allowed for short walks and to have access to national parks during lockdown, in order to increase physical activity, decrease screen time and reduce negative psychological effects.