Ministry Of Health: Distance Learning Affects Children's Mental Health

Director of Prevention and Control of Mental Health and Drug Problems, Ministry of Health, Fidiansjah (Photo: BNPB documentation)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) assesses that distance learning (PJJ) or online learning carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic affects the mental health of children, especially adolescents.

"The portrait illustrates how high mental health problems in adolescents in the COVID-19 period are if not anticipated quickly," said the Director of Prevention and Control of Mental Health and Drug Problems at the Ministry of Health, Fidiansjah during a joint press conference with the COVID-19 Handling Acceleration Task Force (GTPP). at Graha BNPB, Jakarta, Monday 20 July.

He said the magnitude of the problems related to mental health during COVID-19 can be seen from the results of a rapid assessment of the impact of COVID-19 and its impact on Indonesian children conducted by the community organization Wahana Visi Indonesia in May 2020.

The results of the study indicated that the teaching and learning process carried out during the Large-Scale Social Restrictions (PSBB) resulted in only about 68 percent of children having access to networks. "This means that 32 percent of them do not get these facilities," he said.

The impact of children's limitations on the network causes them to learn independently without teacher assistance. He said, this had an impact, namely as many as 37 percent of children could not know when to study because they were studying regularly and then they had to study independently.

Then, 30 percent of them also have difficulty understanding lessons independently because there is no assistance from the teacher. Meanwhile, 21 percent of children were even assessed as unable to understand teacher instructions based on the online learning process.

In addition, the psychosocial impact of learning carried out during the pandemic is also quite worrying, according to him.

"There are 47 percent of children who are bored staying at home. Then 35 percent of children are worried that they will miss lessons because, unlike usual, they do not follow their lessons," he said.

Furthermore, 34 percent of children feel afraid because of COVID-19 even though they are already at home, and 20 percent of children feel longing to meet their friends. Meanwhile, another 10 percent of children are worried about their parents' declining income due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Another data he conveyed also stated that 11 percent of children experienced physical violence because of an unusual learning process. Meanwhile, 62 percent of children also experienced verbal abuse.