Prevention of mental health issues in youth during the Covid-19 pandemic

Internalizirani problemi u ponašanju predstavljaju jedan od glavnih socio-zdravstvenih problema današnjice, kako odraslih tako i djece i mladih. Uz internalizirane probleme vežemo i mentalno zdravlje osobe. Projekcija, da će depresija postati najčešća kronična bolest na svijetu do 2030. godine, postojala je i prije pandemije koronavirusa koja je svakako doprinijela navedenoj projekciji. Prevenciji internaliziranih problema mladih i očuvanju njihovog mentalnog zdravlja mogu pridonijeti razni čimbenici prisutni u obitelji mlade osobe, tj okolini u kojoj živi. Cilj ovog diplomskog rada je ukazati na važnost prevencije problema u ponašanju i očuvanja mentalnog zdravlja mladih, posebno u stanju pandemijske krize koja stvara dodatan teret na zdravlje mladih te naglasiti kako razni stručnjaci, među njima i socijalni radnici, pomažu u prevenciji i očuvanju mentalnog zdravlja. Rezultati prvih istraživanja, početkom 2020. godine, pokazali su brojne negativne posljedice pandemije na mentalno zdravlje ljudi. Vlada je dužna poduzeti mjere kojima će spriječiti pogoršanje zdravstvenog stanja, a to uključuje donošenje Nacionalne strategije očuvanja mentalnog zdravlja djece i mladih koji predstavljaju jednu od najugroženijih skupina.Mental health problems are one of the biggest social and health-related problems of today’s world, in both adults and youngsters. We also associate a person's mental health with internalized problems. The projection that depression will become the most common chronic disease in the world by 2030 existed even before the coronavirus pandemic, which certainly contributed to the aforementioned projection. Various factors present in a young person's family, or their surroundings, can contribute to the prevention of mental health problems in youth. The aim of this thesis is to point out the importance of prevention of behavioral problems and maintaining mental health of young people, especially in a state of pandemic crisis that creates an additional burden on youth health and emphasize how various experts, including social workers, help prevent and preserve mental health. The results of the first research, in early 2020, showed a number of negative consequences of the pandemic on mental health. The government is obliged to take measures to prevent the deterioration of health, and this includes the adoption of the National Strategy for the Preservation of the Mental Health of Children and Youth, which is one of the most vulnerable groups