Mental Health Disorders among Students from Rural Areas Three Months after Returning to School: A Cross-Sectional Study among Polish Students

Abstract

Background: All over the world, the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children’s and adolescents’ mental health has been observed. The conducted research aims to verify whether returning to school, to education inside the classroom in the company of their peers, improved or undermined the students’ mental health. Methods: The study was carried out on a sample of students inhabiting rural areas in a borderland region. The research sample was collected using purposive sampling and consisted of 552 respondents from the seventh and eighth grades of primary school. An auditorium questionnaire was used to gather the research material. Results: Three months after returning to school, the students were in a poor mental state; 61% of the respondents were satisfied with their lives, while 52% showed symptoms of depression as measured with the WHO-5 index, whereas 85% of the respondents have average and high stress levels as measured with the PSSC scale. Higher levels of mental disorders were observed among female respondents and in those students living in villages and evaluating their financial status as worse. Conclusions: Returning to school failed to have a positive impact on the students’ mental health. Disorders occurring on a large scale will have a negative influence on the students’ performance and hinder their re-adaptation to the school environment. Educational authorities should immediately provide the students with support and monitor the situation over the coming months.