Preliminary research suggests the COVID-19 crisis is having a sustained and significant impact on youth mental health in Ontario.
released initial findings Thursday indicating that the majority of children and teenagers saw their mental health decline during the pandemic's second wave.
The findings draw from the responses of roughly 1,500 parents and children in Ontario as part of a series of periodic surveys tracking youth mental health during the pandemic. "We have to have meaningful conversations as our society reopens about how we can prioritize children and their mental health."
"Kids value school beyond just the brick-and-mortar buildings," she said. "We need to try and run school as normally as possible if we want to improve children's mental health." The province has promised all students and education workers would be offered two shots before September. Lydia Muyingo, a PhD student in clinical psychology at Dalhousie University, said SickKids' preliminary findings are consistent with the increased demand for services she's observed in her own clinical work.