The raging COVID-19 pandemic has led to more orphanages in the U.S. as well as serious psychological and behavioural problems in children.
Rachel Kidman, an Epidemiologist from Stony Brook University said if the behavioral problems is not addressed in time, might adversely affect the next generation in multiple ways.
“Those who lost at least a parent or caretaking grandparent to COVID-19 could face drastic consequences, such as depression and suicide, if their trauma is left unchecked.
“They are more likely to drop out of school and become victims of sexual abuse,”said Kidman.
She found that 40,000 children in the U.S. were orphaned because of the pandemic between February 2020 and February 2021, or one orphaned child for every 13 COVID-19 deaths nationally.
In a 2020 survey of 1,000 parents around the country, 71 per cent of parents said the pandemic had taken a toll on their child’s mental health and 69 per cent said the pandemic was the worst thing to happen to their child.
The survey was facilitated by the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago.
From March to October in 2020 in the United States, mental health-related emergency department visits increased 24 per cent for children ages five to 11 and 31 per cent for those ages 12 to 17 compared with 2019 emergency department visit, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
