A study published on Tuesday estimated that at least 1.5 million children and adolescents worldwide were orphaned or lost grandparents or uncles during the COVID-19 pandemic between March 2020 and April 2021.
Study Published in British Medical Journal LancetBelow are the estimates, the authors warn.
In Portugal, 590 children and adolescents will be left orphans, and this number will rise to 660 when you take into account the loss of grandparents who were in their care, according to data Lancet…
For this study, the first of its kind on a global scale, the authors developed mathematical models “using the best available data as an initial attempt to estimate the hidden impact of the pandemic on children“, refers to Lancet in the statement.
The publication says mathematical models have been used to extrapolate to the rest of the world, including Portugal, data from 21 countries, which together account for 76.4% of global deaths from COVID-19.
In these models, data on deaths from COVID-19 or excess deaths(if applicable) that occurred between March 1, 2020 and April 30, 2021, as well as fertility rates for assessing orphanhood during the pandemic.
The study authors linked COVID-19 death rates to fertility data for men and women to estimate the number of children and adolescents who have lost one or both parents to COVID-19.
The analysis was expanded to include the deaths of grandparents or other adult family members aged 60 to 84 who lived with and took care of children, based on United Nations household statistics.
The data include grandparents who took care of grandchildren who were their primary caretakers, as well as grandparents or uncles who lived with the children’s parents and were secondary caregivers.
For the purposes of the study, children and young people under the age of 18 and deaths associated with COVID-19, regardless of whether they were caused directly by the disease or caused by it, were counted. reduced access to health care and treatment for chronic diseases (such as diabetes and cancer) due to a pandemic that contributed to excess mortality.
At least one million children and adolescents were orphaned by their father, mother, or both parents, and half a million lost one of their grandparents or uncles (or both grandparents) caring for them during the year of the pandemic, according to worldwide estimates. presented in the article.
The authors of the work understand that these minors should be made “urgent investments in support services”, since, in their opinion, they are at increased risk of poverty, separation from their families, placement in homes or orphanages, mental disorders, suicide, chronic diseases. illness, sexual, physical and emotional abuse and early pregnancy.
Countries in the study that served as a springboard for global assessments: Argentina, Brazil, Spain, Colombia, United Kingdom, France, Germany, India, Iran, Italy, Kenya, Malawi, Mexico, Nigeria, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Russia , South Africa, USA and Zimbabwe. In the case of the United Kingdom, only data from England and Wales appears.
In these countries, the study estimates that as of April 30, 862 365 children and young people have become orphans or lost their grandparents, who directly took care of them, due to covid-19.
In the “group of 21,” South Africa, Peru, the United States, India, Brazil and Mexico are the countries with the largest estimated number of minors without parents or grandparents, ranging from 94,625 to 141,132 children.
In the month from March to April, the number of orphans in India increased from 5,091 to 43,139, the study stresses, the results of which, according to the authors, are “probably underestimated” because “deaths from COVID-19 may be underreported due to variability in reporting systems, ”and excess mortality data are not readily available.
According to the latest report from the AFP news agency, the covid-19 pandemic has killed at least 4,100,352 people worldwide, of which more than 190.8 million are infected.
In Portugal, since the start of the pandemic in March 2020. 17,219 people died and 935,246 cases of infection were recorded., according to the updated bulletin of the General Directorate of Health.
