{"id":84367,"date":"2021-09-16T16:10:54","date_gmt":"2021-09-16T20:10:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=84367"},"modified":"2021-09-16T16:10:54","modified_gmt":"2021-09-16T20:10:54","slug":"pandemic-triggers-avalanche-of-kid-and-teen-mental-health-problems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=84367","title":{"rendered":"Pandemic Triggers \u2018Avalanche\u2019 of Kid and Teen Mental Health Problems"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pandemic Triggered \u2018Avalanche\u2019 of Kids and Teens With Mental Health Problems \u2014 But They Have Nowhere to Go<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Medical experts across the country say the mental health of children deteriorated during the pandemic \u2014 with a large number of children taking up beds in emergency rooms due to a shortage of placements, providers and resources to combat the crisis.<\/em><\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

By Megan Redshaw
\nThe Defender<\/p>\n

Since the onset of the pandemic, Children\u2019s hospitals throughout the country<\/a> have seen a \u201cmeteoric\u201d rise in the number of children who need mental health help.<\/p>\n

To make matters worse, hospitals that struggled to meet the demand for mental health services before the pandemic are now dealing with even fewer resources \u2014 like hospital beds, providers, therapists and counseling \u2014 thanks to COVID<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mental health among young people deteriorated during the pandemic<\/a> when cabin fever increased family conflicts and closed schools left children isolated from activities and their peers.<\/p>\n

According to The Washington Post<\/a>, from June of last year to late spring 2021, an average of five children each week were admitted to the medical school\u2019s teaching hospital at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina, for overdoses of acetaminophen, opiates, antidepressants and Ritalin.<\/p>\n

Normally, the hospital sees only five kids a month.<\/p>\n

In May, Children\u2019s Hospital in Colorado declared a \u201cstate of emergency<\/a>\u201d as kids being treated for anxiety doubled, depression numbers tripled and substance abuse and eating disorders increased compared to pre-pandemic levels.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe really have never seen anything like this rapid growth in kids presenting with mental health problems and the severity of those problems,\u201d said Jenna Glover,<\/a> director of psychology training at Children\u2019s Hospital Colorado. \u201cI\u2019ve never seen this in my entire career.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other hospitals<\/a> saw even bigger increases. In January, Wolfson Children\u2019s Hospital in Jacksonville, Florida, saw a 300% increase in the number of behavioral health emergency admissions since April 2020.<\/p>\n

In January through April 2021, behavioral health emergency department visits were up 72% over the same time period two years ago, the hospital said.<\/p>\n

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/a> found emergency department visits for suspected suicide attempts during February and March of 2021 were more than 50% higher for teen girls compared to 2019, and more than 4% higher for boys.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the last year, there\u2019s been an avalanche of very severely depressed and anxious children and adolescents,\u201d said<\/a> San Francisco child psychiatrist Michelle Guchereau. It\u2019s \u201cheartbreaking\u201d and \u201coverwhelming\u201d to have to turn some away, she said.<\/p>\n

From April to October 2020, U.S. hospitals saw a 31% increase <\/a>in 12- to 17-year-old kids seeking help for their mental health, and a 24% increase<\/a> for kids ages 5 to 11.<\/p>\n

In March of this year, Seattle Children\u2019s Hospital<\/a> reported seeing one or two patients every night<\/a>for attempted suicide. The hospital boarded kids in the emergency department because there were no pediatric psychiatric beds available.<\/p>\n

A Massachusetts state report<\/a> showed 39% of pediatric patients who came to the ER for mental health issues in 2020 took up beds in the emergency department due to unavailability of pediatric beds.<\/p>\n

During the pandemic, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children\u2019s Hospital of Chicago<\/a> reached what Dr. Jennifer Hoffmann<\/a>, an emergency medicine physician, called a \u201ccrisis point.\u201d There were so many mental health-related emergency room visits it activated a response usually reserved for disaster management.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt allows for coordination at the highest level of leadership in order to address the mental health crisis among children,\u201d said Hoffmann.<\/p>\n

Hoffmann\u2019s hospital also had to board kids<\/a> in the emergency department or admit them to medical beds, where they sometimes waited for days until a psychiatric inpatient bed opened up.<\/p>\n