Depression & Anxiety in Teens

Depression & Anxiety in Teens

Teenage depression is  common. About 13 percent of adolescents experienced at least one major depressive episode in 2017Links to an external site., with teen girls being as much as three times more likely to report a depressive episode than boys. An estimated 3.2 percentLinks to an external site. of children and teens between the ages of 3 and 17 have been diagnosed with depression. Depression rates are growing among teens: Rates of a major depressive episodes in teenage girls went up from 12 percent in 2007 to 20 percent in 2017, and 5 to 7 percent for teenage boys in the same timeframe.

Anxiety is also an issue. The National Institute of HealthLinks to an external site. reported nearly 1 in 3 of all adolescents age 13 to 18 will experience an anxiety disorder. These numbers have been rising steadily; children and teens diagnosed with anxiety disorders rose from 5.5% (2007) to 9.4% (2019).

Is there a correlation with social media (the hashtag arrived in 2007Links to an external site.)? Or are more teens and children being diagnosed as a result of better screening??? Or, is there another explanation?

 

Social Media

Keep in mind, social media has benefits. For individuals, social media can:

• increase access to health information
• provide avenues for social support

For public health providers interested in health promotion, social media can:

• increase reach
• lower costs
• enable the delivery of interactive or tailored messages

Plus, not all children and teens are impacted the same by screen time (please read The Complex World of Teens and Screens). I’ve also included some information from Jonathan Haidt’s research for you to browse (optional).  I’ve also added a interview with Jonathan Haidt, The ‘National Crisis’ of Gen Z.

 

What Should Public Health Do?

Here is what I want to know from you:

Is anxiety and depression a public health issue? If so, how can public health experts address it? What should the medical community do? Is there a role technology companies play? What should the government do? What about individuals/families?

 

Public Health Principles

As you ponder these questions, consider the following:

• Principle of the Aggregate: Public health focuses on the health needs of the entire population.
• Principle of Prevention: Public health emphasizes prevention.
• Principle of Epidemiology: Public health relies on epidemiology (the science of understanding the causes, distribution, and control of disease in populations) as its method of inquiry.
• Principle of Community Organization: Public health organizes community resources to meet health needs.
• Principle of Leadership: Public health leads when others cannot or will not.
• Principle of the Greater Good: Public health gives first consideration to interventions that provide greater good for the greatest number of people.

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Instructions

Please write a 750-1250 words paper using APA formatting to explore if anxiety and depression are a public health issue. And, if so, how can public health experts address these issues? What should the medical community do? Is there a role technology companies play? What should the government do? What about individuals and families?

If you are interested in a career in public health, you might consider looking at this topic from the eyes of your future career (e.g.,  physical therapist, physician assistant, dentist, respiratory therapist, pharmacist, radiologic technologist, dental hygienist, podiatrist, occupational therapist, health educator, athletic trainer, nursing home administrator and sanitarian/environmental health specialist).

 A question and answer format is appropriate, if you like.

 

Your paper should include:

• Are depression and anxiety a public health issue? (10 points)
• How and why can public health experts address anxiety and depression? (10 points)
• Specifically, what are the roles and responsibilities of specific practitioners/organizations? (10 points)
• What role should technology companies, the government, individuals/families play? (10 points)
• Please include how your solution addresses the public health principles:
  • Principle of the Aggregate: Public health focuses on the health needs of the entire population. (5 points)
  • Principle of Prevention: Public health emphasizes prevention. (5 points)
  • Principle of Epidemiology: Public health relies on epidemiology (the science of understanding the causes, distribution, and control of disease in populations) as its method of inquiry. (5 points)
  • Principle of Community Organization: Public health organizes community resources to meet health needs. (5 points)
  • Principle of Leadership: Public health leads when others cannot or will not. (5 points)
  • Principle of the Greater Good: Public health gives first consideration to interventions that provide greater good for the greatest number of people. (5 points)

 

• ️ Critique of References: For at least two of your most commonly used citations, evaluate each one separately indicating each component of quality using the criteria presented in Riegelman on p. 64 (12 points)

 Note: Submit your paper by copying and pasting it into the text edit box. Please do not submit a link or pdf. When you copy/paste your document into Canvas some formatting will be lost. I am aware of this issue.

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• • Your paper should conform to the APA guidelines. Use formal citations for Web sites and other references  placing the citations at the end of the paper in a bibliography. Refer to the APA guide.Links to an external site. You should include a title, but you do not need to include a title page.
  • Please make sure to carefully proofread your paper for spelling and grammatical errors prior to submission. A total of 28 points is awarded based on the degree to which your paper is well-written. Keep in mind that if I am unable to understand what you are trying to communicate, I cannot award points.  (28 points)

 

• This assignment is worth 100 points, so please be sure to place a priority on submitting it on time. Submit your work below, prior to June 9 at noon.
• If you need help with your writing, please check out the NetTutor tab to the left here in Canvas, or you can visit the Foothill Teaching & Learning CenterLinks to an external site..

Please make sure you submit your own work. As a reminder, below is the Foothill College policy on plagiarism:

 

Academic Standards of Conduct

Please read the Foothill College Honor CodeLinks to an external site.. Cheating is the act of obtaining or attempting to obtain credit for academic work through the use of dishonest, deceptive or fraudulent means. Plagiarism is representing the work of someone else as your own and submitting it for any purpose. All written work submitted will be checked for plagiarism using the Turnitin App. It is your responsibility to know what constitutes academic dishonesty. Most of all, respect yourself and your fellow students by maintaining academic integrity.

 

Collaborating on or copying homework in whole or in part will be considered an act of academic dishonesty and result in a grade of 0 for that assignment. Students are encouraged to share information and ideas, but not their work. See these links on plagiarism:

Foothill College strategies on avoiding plagiarismLinks to an external site.

Foothill College’s statement on Academic HonestyLinks to an external site.

 

Rubric

To view grading criteria, please review the rubric below.  Should you have any questions, please contact me.

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Quality Standards for Health Information on the Internet: Review Prior to Working on your Midterm Paper

Quality Standards

Criteria	Questions to Ask
Overall site quality	Is the purpose of the site clear? Is the site easy to navigate? Are the site’s sponsors clearly identified Are advertising and sales separated from health information
Authors	Are the authors of the information clearly identified? Do the authors have health credentials? Is contact information provided?
Information	Does the site get its information from reliable sources? Is the information useful and easy to understand? Is it easy to tell the difference between fact and opinion?
Relevance	Are there answers to your specific questions?
Timeliness	Can you tell when the information was written? Is it current?
Links	Do the internal links work? Are there links to related sites for more information?
Privacy	Is your privacy protected? Can you search for information without providing information about you?

Adapted from criteria distributed by American Public Health Association.