Key Learnings on Children’s Rights disruption during the COVID-19 Pandemic: the Disease, the Evidence, and Public Policies

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on children and adolescents, both due to the direct effects of the virus itself and the public health measures implemented. This analysis examines the successes and failures of the gerontocentric response to the pandemic, which invisibilized children and adolescents from the global context, including their health and life cycle. In contrast to the relatively low incidence of pediatric COVID-19 infection, numerous guidelines were hastily developed for the treatment of this disease, affecting the management of other known illnesses, including non-invasive respiratory support and inhaled therapy. The confinement measures and school closures had a minimal impact on the propagation of the virus, thereby refuting the role of super-spreaders. However, the prolonged maintenance of these measures was based on decisions not supported by evidence, resulting in an enormous educational loss and psychosocial distress. The mental health crisis in children and adolescents has intensified, with a steep rise in depression and eating disorders, particularly among socioeconomically vulnerable populations. Other health domains were disrupted, including preventive health services, routine check-ups and vaccinations, diagnoses of diseases such as cancer, and rehabilitation therapies. In addition, we critically analyzed the narrative of the mandates for the use of masks and vaccinations in children and adolescents. In conclusion, we reflected on the achievements and mistakes during the pandemic in key health areas of children and adolescents, in order to learn and optimize our response to future situations. It is imperative to adopt urgent measures to identify and improve in these areas, whose catastrophic effects we are just getting to understand on children and adolescents and future adults.