00:01
So, recently,
we have lived
through a pandemic.
00:09
And we are still
living through it.
00:11
It's not over in 2021.
00:16
What we have learned over
the past year and a half,
is that pandemics and
other natural disasters
can actually impact a child
in a way that any other
trauma would impact the child.
00:37
Why?
What are the different risk
factors we're seeing here?
Well, with the pandemic,
for example, everything shut down.
00:47
In March 2020,
everything shut down.
00:51
People couldn't go
to work anymore.
00:54
People lost their jobs,
grownups lost their jobs.
00:58
And as they lost their jobs,
as they lost their jobs,
they lost their insurance.
01:05
And suddenly,
the household now
was worried about how are
we going to pay mortgage,
how are we going to be able
to get help with our health,
so you had parental and
environmental insecurity.
01:21
When you have parental and
environmental insecurity,
the risk of mental illness
for that child goes up.
01:29
When you have stressors that
are affecting the grownups,
that affects the
child in the house.
01:37
Also, when you have a disruption
of the learning environments,
and schools shut down,
and everyone went online,
that also causes a disruption
in social emotional learning.
01:50
And so children as
young as four or five,
we're now sitting in
front of a screen,
trying to learn
how to connect
when it's difficult enough
to try and understand
a grownups emotions,
when you're in the
same room as them.
02:10
When we think about this,
and I am talking about it
related to the pandemic.
02:15
But if we think about any
other environmental event
that happens that can
disrupt employment,
that can increase stress,
hurricanes, floods, droughts.
02:31
These are things,
earthquakes,
these are all things that
impact a child's capacity
to develop a really
strong, emotional,
and healthy psychiatric
and psychological basis.
02:48
So when we're thinking
about pandemics
and other natural
environmental traumas,
we also have to think there's a
higher risk for ACEs with kids.
03:02
We also have to think about the
child who has contracted COVID,
that child is going to
possibly be a long hauler.
03:13
And what do we mean
by long hauler?
That's a child who may have lung
problems for the rest of their life.
03:20
So we have to think about,
this impact is not just on
the child in the moment,
this is an impact on
the entire family.
03:29
So you've got the child
who is experiencing loss,
maybe a parents
because of COVID,
or for themselves
being terribly ill.
03:42
One of the other things that
I just wanted to mention here,
because I say it's
pandemic, or other traumas
is the incredible
increase in gun violence,
and the impact that that has on
family and youth from mass shootings.
03:59
And so that child, again,
may be recovering from the impact of
having been a victim of gun violence,
but also may have
lost family members.
04:10
So we have to really
be thinking about that.
04:13
And we have to
think about the fact
that these children are going
to have ongoing medical needs.
04:21
And that again, increases the
stress level for the parents
who may or may not
have insurance.
04:31
So what is our role?
What is the nurses role
when you are working
with children in youth
who have mental
health challenges?
Assessment.
04:42
Assess, assess, assess.
04:45
Make sure you're assessing
with all your senses.
04:50
Make sure that you help
educate the family.
04:54
Get the referrals in,
give some health
counselling to the family.
05:01
Make sure that the family
has access to references.
05:05
And also make sure you have
access to crisis referrals.
05:10
Because these
situations with a child
can escalate into a crisis
with very little warning.
05:19
You want to make sure
that you stay vigilant
that you are constantly
evaluating the child's change,
the change in demeanour,
the change in their voice,
their tone, their behaviours.
05:34
And also, importantly,
whether you're working with children
or you're working with adults
who have mental
health challenges.
05:42
You need to engage
in self-care,
because it's exhausting.
05:48
You give so much of
yourself, you are assessing,
you are putting
yourself out there.
05:54
So making sure that
you have access
for self-care for yourself,
that you are taking
care of your own needs.