Coronavirus Disease 2019, School Closures, and Children’s Mental Health

• Published in: Soa--chʻŏngsonyŏn chŏngsin ŭihak = Journal of child & adolescent psychiatry Vol. 31; no. 2; pp. 74 - 79
• Main Author: Bahn, Geon Ho
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea (South) 대한소아청소년정신의학회 01.04.2020; Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• Subjects: Acquired immune deficiency syndrome; AIDS; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; HIV; Human immunodeficiency virus; Mortality; Pandemics; School closures; Special; Teenagers; United States > US; China; Japan; COVID-19; School closures; Economy; Coronavirus disease 2019; Mental health; Pandemic; Children; Resilience
• ISSN: 1225-729X; 2233-9183
• DOI: 10.5765/jkacap.200010

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which was first identified in Wuhan, China, in late December of 2019 is rapidly spreading across the globe. The South Korean government has ordered the closure of all schools, as part of its attempts to use social distancing measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The effects of the school closures on reducing contagion are generally positive; however, the measure is controversial because of the socioeconomic ripple effect that accompanies it. The author briefly reviewed the existing literature on the mental health aspects of disasters and presents the issues related to school closures due to pandemics, from medical and socioeconomic perspectives and in terms of children's mental health. The results of this review suggest that research on children's mental health in relation to the adoption of school closures as a pandemic mitigation strategy is urgently needed.