COVID-19-related school closures and patterns of hospital admissions with stress-related presentations in secondary school-aged adolescents: weekly time series. (November 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Blackburn, Ruth M.; Phillips Owen, Jacquie; Downs, Johnny; Gilbert, Ruth
• Is Part Of: British journal of psychiatry. Volume 221:Number 5(2022)
• Page Start: 655
• Page End: 657
• Publication Date: 2022-11
• Subjects: Epidemiology -- child and adolescent mental health -- stress-related presentations -- mental health in schools -- COVID-19 pandemic; Psychiatry -- Periodicals; Psychology, Pathological -- Periodicals; 616.89005
• DOI: 10.1192/bjp.2022.113
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0007-1250

Abstract

Summary: This study examines health service indicators of stress-related presentations (relating to pain, mental illness, psychosomatic symptoms and self-harm) in adolescents of secondary school age, using Hospital Episode Statistics data for England. We examined weekly time series data for three academic years spanning the time before (2018–2019) and during the COVID-19 pandemic (2019–2020 and 2020–2021), including the first lockdown when schools were closed to the majority of pupils. For all secondary school children, weekly stress presentations dropped following school closures. However, patterns of elevated stress during school terms re-established after reopening, with girls aged 11–15 showing an overall increase compared with pre-pandemic rates.