[Covid-19 and child health: confinement and its impact according to child professionals.]

Abstract

Objective: The Covid-19 pandemic led to the establishment of the state of alarm in Spanish and the initial lockdown of the entire population. The aim of this study is to analyse the assessment of professionals working with children on the impact of quarantine on the health and health inequalities of the child population, as well as the importance given to the intermediate factors that can modulate the impact of the experience of lockdown on children's health.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was made according to an online questionnaire to professionals in health and socio-educational fields working with children (n=214) with questions concerning the potential effects of lockdown and the dimensions that could modulate those effects. For the analysis, descriptive statistics were calculated together with Chi-square tests and comparison of means to analyse differences according to professional field.

Results: 86% of the experts pointed out the potential negative impact of quarantine on the health of children, especially that of the most vulnerable, highlighting the adverse effects of conflict at home and exposure to tobacco smoke in this experience, which were scored in importance with more than 9 and 8.5 respectively.

Conclusions: The results show how, according to child professionals, lockdown can have an impact on the health of the child population that goes beyond the direct effect of Covid-19.