Mental Health Impact of COVID-19 on Children and Youth in Saskatchewan: Parent/Caregiver and Child Perspectives

Sahana Ramamoorthy

Impact

  • The study would be extended to another round of data collection in the form of See Us, Hear Us 2.0, which further investigated the mental health of children, youth and their families post-pandemic.

  • The collected information was used to recommend improvement in children and youth mental health services and support families in Saskatchewan.

  • The researcher’s work contributed to presenting the project to the Saskatchewan Ministry of Health and the Chief Medical Health Officer of Saskatchewan Health Authority.

  • This work contributed to the creation of local data of mental health impacts on Saskatchewan youth with the hope this will provide better and more targeted supports for children in these communities

  • Saskatchewan

  • Studentship

  • University of Saskatchewan

  • Saskatchewan Population Health and Evaluation Research Unit (SPHERU)

  • Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (SHRF)

  • 2021-2022

  • COVID-19

  • Children (aged 1-12), Youth (aged 13-18), Family Members

About the Project

The research project examines the impact of COVID-19 on the mental health of children and youth (ages 8 to 18) in Saskatchewan. Its objective was to collect useful data on how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the mental health of children and youth and their need, access and satisfaction with existing mental health services. Through this project, the researcher aimed to study and understand:

  1. how caregivers perceive the status of their children’s mental health;

  2. children’s need for help during the COVID-19 pandemic; and

  3. children’s help-seeking behaviour.

Methodology

Based on the data collected for the project, (510 children and youth (aged 8-18) and their parent/caregivers (dyads)), the researcher studied and understood the participants’ backgrounds and mental health statuses. Statistical analyses were conducted to test if and how factors such as age, location and other environmental factors influenced changes in a children's mental health.

Findings

  • A significantly higher proportion of children with pre-existing mental health issues reported needing mental health help and 2 in 5 children were not getting the support they need.

  • More children who had hybrid school reported needing mental health help, and 1 in 3 were not getting the help they needed.

  • A higher proportion of children who reported increased tension/conflict at home reported needing mental health help, and 1 in 3 also said they were not getting the help they needed.

  • Majority of children who had poor mental health before the COVID-19 pandemic reported needing help, and 1 in 11 reported not getting the help they needed.

  • Most parents who had a child with pre-existing mental health issues reported that the child needs mental health help.

  • More parents whose children reported more than 3 hours of screen time said their child’s overall mental health worsened since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Project Outreach

The project was based in Saskatchewan and included the participation of families and children from numerous communities across the province. The Canadian-based project has contributed to the global literature on mental health and children and youth during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Resources Created