The Impact of COVID on Adolescent Mental Health, Self-Harm and Suicide: How Can Primary Care Provider Respond? A Position Paper of the European Academy of Pediatrics

Pierre-André Michaud; Laurent Michaud; Artur Mazur; Adamos Hadjipanayis; Carole Kapp; Anne-Emmanuelle Ambresin

doi:10.3389/fped.2022.800000

The Impact of COVID on Adolescent Mental Health, Self-Harm and Suicide: How Can Primary Care Provider Respond? A Position Paper of the European Academy of Pediatrics

Front Pediatr. 2022 Mar 23:10:800000. doi: 10.3389/fped.2022.800000. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Pierre-André Michaud¹, Laurent Michaud², Artur Mazur³, Adamos Hadjipanayis⁴, Carole Kapp², Anne-Emmanuelle Ambresin⁵

Affiliations

¹ Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.
² Department of Psychiatry, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.
³ Faculty of Medicine, University of Rzeszów, Rzeszów, Poland.
⁴ Medical School, European University of Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus.
⁵ Department of Pediatrics, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Abstract

Adolescents aged 10 to 19 live a period of their life marked by opportunities and vulnerabilities during which the issue of mental health is of prime importance. Since several decades, and especially since the start of the COVID pandemic, mental health problems and disorders among adolescents have increased around the world. Depression, self-harm and suicidal behavior are common during this period of life, and pediatricians can play a pivotal role in identifying affected or vulnerable youngsters. This article describes risk factors for self-harm and suicidal behavior and reviews how primary care pediatricians and health professionals can respond to such situations. This scoping review is based on existing evidences as well as the authors clinical experience. It suggests concrete actions that can be taken to secure the life of at risk teenagers, and discusses how to organize the transfer to mental health professionals when needed.

Keywords: COVID; adolescent; mental health care; self-harm; suicide.

Publication types

Review