CNN (11/14, Christensen) reports, “There has been a steady increase in the number of children who are seen in emergency” departments (EDs) “for suicidal thoughts,” an increase that “started even before the Covid-19 pandemic, which brought record high demand for psychological services for children,” researchers concluded in findings published online in Pediatrics. Using data from Illinois hospitals, researchers examined “the number of children ages five to 19 who sought help for suicide in” EDs “between January 2016 and June 2021,” finding that ED visits of children “with suicidal thoughts increased 59% from 2016-17 to 2019-21.”
HealthDay (11/14, Norton) reports, “Experts said that while the findings come from one state, they reflect what’s been going on nationally,” and “also highlight” the fact that “U.S. children and teenagers have been showing a deterioration in their mental health for years.”
Related Links:
— “Study finds ‘huge’ increase in children going to the emergency room with suicidal thoughts ” Jen Christensen, CNN, November 14, 2022