A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Open Network reports that universal screening of students for signs of depression in schools may result in them starting treatment. The growing incidence of unmet mental health needs among school children prompted this study in the USA. From 2008 to 2018, there has been an increase in students reporting symptoms of depression and the numbers in the country have gone up from 8.3 per cent to 14.4 per cent.
Depression is a serious mood disorder that can have negative effects on one’s quality of life. This includes having low energy and interest in things that once brought joy, feeling tired, sleep disruptions, and having suicidal thoughts.
This three-year study involved 12,000 participants from 14 high schools in Pennsylvania and researchers found that universal screening helped with both identification and treatment initiation for adolescent depression. They also reported that the number of symptoms among females and minority students was greater. The researchers now plan on focusing on school districts all over the USA that need to implement a screening programme.
Similar screenings and observations can go a long way in identifying signs of depression in India too. In fact, researchers and mental health practitioners are calling for the same action in the country as even before the pandemic, at least 50 million children in India were affected by mental health issues. Studies have shown that 80 to 90 per cent of these children have not or will not seek support.
A 2020 study published in the Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care found that even though schools in Gujarat had added the flagship school health programme of the Government of India to their curriculum, there was no specific strategy to screen students for mental health disorders. The study was carried out among 742 adolescent schoolgirls and startlingly 48.78 per cent of them screened positive for common mental health disorders like anxiety and depression.
Earlier, a 2018 study that involved 693 students in Gujarat found that one in eight adolescents was at risk for mental health problems. A number of reasons were associated with these conditions including having eyesight problems, scoring less than 50 per cent or failing in the annual exams and difficulties in studying at home.
Symptoms of depression in adolescents
According to Mayo Clinic, depression can cause several behavioural and emotional changes.
Behavioural changes
· Feeling tired
· Sleeping too little or too much
· Social isolation
· Self-harm
· Angry outbursts or risky behaviour
· Poor school performance or absence from school
Emotional changes
· Feeling low and spells of crying for no apparent reason
· Feeling angry, frustrated, annoyed, or irritated
· Loss of interest in usual activities
· Low esteem
· Trouble thinking or concentrating, making decisions, and remembering things
· Extreme sensitivity to rejection
· A constant feeling that the future looks bleak