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Research Critique for Media Presentation
The media presentation I read from my assignment was a news article online titled, Children in
Mental Health Crisis Surge into Hospital E.R.s, published by The Wall Street Journal. The
article discusses how children suffering from mental health crisis are flocking to local hospital
emergency departments. “While anxiety, depression and other mental-health conditions started to
climb among children before Covid, they soared during the isolation and disruption of the
pandemic. The increased demand for treatment exacerbated a shortage of available mental-health
services. This has left desperate families pouring into emergency departments that legally can
turn no one away” (Evans, M. & Frosch, D., 2023). Parents first seek help for their children at
psychiatric treatment facilities to be told they can get put on the wait list. With no other options
and to avoid the risk of going back home and a potential incident such as suicide attempt
occurring, they feel better going to the hospital. “According to data gathered from 38 children’s
hospitals by the Children’s Hospital Association, trips to emergency departments for mental-
health treatment were 20% higher in 2022 compared with 2019. Children seeking help in E.R.s
for suicide or self-harm soared 50% at those hospitals during the same period” (Evans, M. &
Frosch, D., 2023).
Issues Being Addressed
The issue being addressed in the article is how our health system is failing the children in
America. The number of children suffering from mental illnesses continues to rise and still no
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major plans for more treatment facilities to cater to children are being made. With lack of
resources there is little local hospitals can help with other than “boarding” patients for weeks at a
time to months until space becomes available at appropriate facilities. “At Best Point
Education & Behavioral Health, which provides outpatient pediatric mental-health services in the
Cincinnati area, the number of children who spent time on the waiting list soared to 6,275 in the
fiscal year that ended in June, up from 1,128 during fiscal 2020. It took an average of 109 days to
get services, compared with 56 in fiscal 2020” (Evans, M. & Frosch, D., 2023).
Research Methods Used
The Wall Street Journal is one of the most reputable, fact and data-based newspapers in
the country. The research methods used to help create this article were archival research and
survey research. Archival research is where the researcher uses existing records and examines
them (Crawford, 2018, p.79). Throughout the article data was reported from research groups and
hospital records. Survey research is the methodology where questionnaires are created to get
information regarding opinions, behaviors, and attitudes (Crawford, 2018, p.81). The parents of
patients and hospital staff were interviewed for the publication. One keynote interview response
from the article was, “They essentially are in a holding pattern,” said Dr. Steven Berry, medical
director for the CAMC Women and Children’s Hospital in Charleston, W.Va. Kids admitted to
the hospital’s emergency department for mental-health crises have waited up to a month in
rooms approximately 13-by-13 feet because staff can’t find a facility that can take them. The
rooms have no windows to the outside world” (Evans, M. & Frosch, D., 2023).
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Reliability Concerns
Overall, the article was strong with reliable sources that were referenced and data that
could be easily found and confirmed. The issue with using archival research as a method is some
records needed may not have been completed or collected yet (Crawford, 2018, p.80). The issue
with survey research is the families' firsthand experiences with seeking mental health services
can be biased. The researcher must be careful with the wording of questions and data entry.
Conclusion
It was clear that extensive archival research was done to support the article. Data was reported
from Childrens Hospital Association, Researchers from Brown University, JAMA Psychiatry,
and hospitals in various states across the United States. The use of archival research seems
effective because having access to various resources makes the article strong and easier to
validate being able to quantitative data.
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References
Crawford (2018). Introduction to Research: Less Fright, More Insight: A Customized Version of
Research Methods: Are You Equipped? Second Edition by Jennifer Bonds-Raacke and
John Raacke (3rd ed.). Kendall Hunt Publishing.
https://libertyonline.vitalsource.com/reader/books/9781524965457
Evans, M. & Frosch, D. (2023, November 8). Children in Mental Health Crisis Surge into
Hospital E.R.s. The Wall Street Journal. https://www.wsj.com/health/healthcare/children-
mental-health-hospitals-treatment-cfb6c797
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