Chronically Sick Kids Need Better Mental Health Support — But What About Preventing Chronic Disease in the First Place?

The author of an op-ed in MedPage Today called for better mental healthcare support for…

Children's Health Defense

Children and adolescents with chronic physical conditions have a 51% greater risk of developing mental health conditions compared to children and adolescents without chronic physical conditions — yet mental health support for chronically ill kids is lacking, according to the author of an op-ed published Sept. 8 in MedPageToday.

“The medical field puts extensive resources into treating these conditions. However, fewer resources are invested in addressing young patients’ mental health, which is suffering in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic,” wrote Jordyn J. Williams, an M.D./Master of Public Health candidate at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

Williams called on the medical establishment to do better:

“As healthcare workers and advocates, our job is to consistently explore ways to improve the holistic care of every person we are privileged to care for. There is no time to waste when it comes to instituting promising hospital initiatives to better meet the mental health needs of children and adolescents experiencing chronic illness.”

Williams pulled the 51% greater risk statistic from a 2019 study, published in Pediatrics. She also cited a 2010 study, also published in Pediatrics, that concluded the risk of self-harm is significantly higher among young people suffering from chronic physical conditions.

According to that study, “youth with co-occurring chronic physical and mental conditions … had significantly higher odds of self-harm … suicidal ideation … and suicide attempts … than healthy peers.” Youths with chronic physical conditions alone were at slightly elevated risk for all three outcomes.

Other recent studies have also drawn a link between chronic illness in youth and mental health disorders.

A systematic review and meta-analysis published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics identified a prevalence of anxiety and depression among youth with chronic illness “more than 3 times greater than what is seen in the community setting.”

“Anxiety and depression are common clinical comorbidities and should be considered when assessing and treating youth with chronic pain,” the study noted.

And a 2019 systematic review published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry found “the prevalence of anxiety disorder was increased in youths with CMCs [chronic medical conditions] compared to the general population.”

The review presented evidence linking conditions such as asthma, diabetes and inflammatory bowel disease with a higher incidence of anxiety.

Williams suggested that decreased school participation and less social interaction with friends are significant contributors to the decline in mental health of pediatric patients, “as these activities are crucial for social and cognitive development.”

Citing her own experience in pediatric wards, Williams said:

“From my experiences on the wards, I found that the interactions of young patients with chronic illness were often limited to their family, if present, and the health professionals caring for them. Rarely did I see interaction with peers their own age.

“Notably, there are children of similar age around — in the rooms next to, across, and down the hall from them. Though, even with available community spaces, I noticed that the kids seldom used them together.” . . .