[News] Children’s Hospitals Battle COVID-19, Surging Mental Health Needs

[Dr_-_PiKaChU]

 

Addressing these needs, as well as ensuring equitable treatment for all kids, has been a major focal point, according to a panel of children's hospital executives who shared their perspectives during a webinar Thursday as part of the ongoing U.S. News & World Report Healthcare of Tomorrow virtual series.

"The stresses on the system around mental health are very, very substantial," said Dr. Dennis Lund, chief medical officer at Stanford Children's Health in California, during the webinar. "This is

 

"There are absolutely insufficient resources to deal with this, and it has clearly gotten worse with COVID," he added, as so many children and families grapple with school disruptions, childcare needs and other challenges. According to pre-pandemic estimates, about 1 in 5 children in the U.S. has a mental health condition requiring medical attention – numbers that may now be only the tip of the iceberg.

In response, many children's hospitals have ramped up their telehealth programs, leading to unexpected progress and new opportunities. Not only has access to mental health care increased, allowing teams to connect with more kids during the pandemic, but there are unique benefits to seeing children in their home environment versus in the office setting, the panelists noted.

"We have many stories of our counselors or therapists who said, 'I have made breakthroughs with this child that I haven't been able to do for months now that I'm in their space,'" said Dr. Emily Chapman, chief medical officer and senior vice president of medical affairs at Children's Minnesota, a pediatric hospital system based in the Twin Cities.

[ MAP: The Spread of Coronavirus ]

Even though COVID-19 has generally affected fewer children than adults, pediatric providers have had to mobilize in unprecedented ways to safeguard the health of their patients and staff. That has involved implementing evolving protocols for COVID-19 testing, personal protective equipment and other precautions.

"Whatever it costs us, in the middle of this horrible situation, it's a good spend to focus on staff and patient safety first and foremost," said Dr. Larry Hollier, chief of plastic surgery at Baylor College of Medicine and surgeon-in-chief at Texas Children's Hospital, based in Houston.

 

"Now we understand the behavior of this virus much better, and we have much better treatments," Hollier said. "I'm so optimistic, now that vaccines are available, that there is a light at the end of this long tunnel for us." Texas Children's is part of a new vaccine study looking at children ages 5 to 16, Hollier said. "I'm very hopeful that very soon we'll be able to get some of these vaccinations into children," he added.

Children's hospitals are also doubling down on their efforts to address health disparities and improve equitable access to care during the pandemic. With more than 75% of COVID-19 deaths among children occurring in communities of color, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, pediatric providers are devising new ways to reach children and families in need.

At Texas Children's, for example, "we have a Community Cares group that goes out into these areas and brings the health care to them, not relying upon them to come to the medical center," Hollier said. Especially in situations where transportation is a challenge, "trying to provide that care close to home is a key part of our strategy," he said.

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Study: COVID Pediatric Hospitalizations Surged ]

Chapman shared the example of outreach efforts that Children's Minnesota has made to the Somali community in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. Several years ago, when the region faced a measles outbreak stemming from growing vaccine hesitancy, Children's Minnesota worked closely with imams at mosques in the community to build trust, relationships and awareness. Clinicians saw that this "significantly improved our vaccination rate against measles during that time," Chapman said. "We remained sort of standing side by side and available for conversation rather than pushing our agenda."

Chapman, Lund and Hollier all emphasized that these types of strategies – building trust with community leaders and ambassadors – could help address vaccine hesitancy surrounding innoculations for COVID-19 going forward.

"I am hopeful, because I think when you ask most people who are vaccine-hesitant why they don't get the vaccine, it's because they are afraid of long-term side effects," Hollier said. "I think the longer we go in this vaccination program, the more we're going to demonstrate that there is a very safe profile to these vaccines."