Archana Basu, PhD and Nancy Rotter, PhD: Navigating the Post-Pandemic Transition Back to School

For kids, as well as their parents and teachers, September is always a turbulent month.  This year promises to be a little different.  As many kids have been out of the classroom for 18 months as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, September will bring excitement but may also present significant challenges as kids get back to the classroom.  In an editorial published in MedPage Today, Archana Basu, PhD and Nancy Rotter, PhD discuss how pediatricians and other health care providers can support families as children head back to classrooms this year.  

Drs. Basu and Rotter also highlight the need for greater attention to the mental health of younger children in the setting of the pandemic.  The data on younger children is limited; however, reports from parents and caregivers suggest that the pandemic has had a negative impact on their social, emotional, and behavioral development.  Given that the experiences of early childhood play such an important role in longer-term health and development, it is critical that we provide early interventions and support to children, parents and other caregivers.

Their article offers programmatic considerations for healthcare professionals, as well as practical suggestions for supporting parents of young children who are adjusting to daycare or school.

Kids’ Transitions to Classrooms Won’t Be Easy, but We Can Help (MedPage Today)

Archana Basu, PhD is a clinical psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry at MGH and an instructor at Harvard Medical School.  She is currently a research associate at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health; her research focuses on the impact of traumatic and severe stressors on mental and physical health outcomes in children across the developmental lifespan.  Clinically Dr. Basu works with families coping with severe or traumatic stressors, chronic or terminal medical conditions, and bereavement.

Nancy Rotter, PhD is a clinical psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry at MGH, Co-Director of the Pediatric Behavioral Medicine Program at MassGeneral Hospital for Children, and an Assistant Professor in Psychology at Harvard Medical School.