PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — While some scientists are researching new ways to fight COVID-19, others are looking back at lessons learned from lockdown.
In February 2020, as COVID-19 first spread, we knew very little and only had social distancing and masks to protect us. Remote schooling was put in place along with larger social lockdowns, becoming the new norm in children’s lives.
A recent report called “Hidden Pain,” conducted in part at the University of Pennsylvania and Nemours Children’s Health, looks back at the impact. In the group they studied, between 18% and 60% of children and adolescents scored higher-than-normal expected risk levels for depression and anxiety.
The impact of closures was great and compounded by the fact that many lost a parent or loved one to COVID-19.
In addition to identifying issues, the goal of the research is also to find ways to minimize them in the future, if similar steps need to be made.
KYW Newsradio’s Medical Reports are sponsored by Independence Blue Cross.