About the project
The NUM 2.0 sub-project coverCHILD (COVID-19 Research Infrastructure Platform for Children and Adolescents) deals with the unique situation of children, adolescents and their families in times of the COVID-19 pandemic and examines the effects of the pandemic on their physical and mental health. The aim is to gain a fundamental understanding of the mechanisms of resilience and vulnerability of children and young people in global and social crisis situations. The aim of coverCHILD is to investigate the particular manifestations of disease, vulnerabilities and consequences of the pandemic through an interdisciplinary research platform and thus create the basis for adequate and timely responses to future challenges.
In the NUM 2.0 sub-project coverCHILD, we have set ourselves the goal of protecting the health interests of children, adolescents and their families in the long term through targeted networking of existing structures and the establishment of the necessary infrastructure. The aim of coverCHILD is to establish a joint interdisciplinary research platform for the systematic analysis of data and the networking of research into the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of infectious diseases and post-infectious diseases in particular, as well as the general impact of crises on the health of children and young people.
The current project phase focuses on the targeted networking of existing NUM structures and the development of necessary supplementary infrastructures, which are being modelled on the basis of use cases in the work packages and together with other sub-projects. The challenge for coverCHILD is to network university hospitals with each other in such a way that the particular stresses and threats faced by children and adolescents and their families in times of crisis can be recorded and analysed as quickly as possible, both somatically and psychologically/psychiatrically. It is also important to collect and process routine data in such a way that trends can be recognised quickly and prevention, diagnostics and therapies can be adapted accordingly. As part of several use cases, CoverCHILD is specifically investigating the feasibility of this project in this funding period by having selected clinics work together on these topics as examples, with the aim of networking all clinics in the future and providing the necessary infrastructure in the long term.
In 10 work packages (WPs), key questions are asked about the situation of children and young people in the coronavirus pandemic and crises in general. The work packages are closely interlinked and organised into three levels: (1) Coordination & management: Two work packages on the coordination and participatory management of coverCHILD and on the topics of knowledge sharing and communication. (2) Health Promotion, Prevention & Intervention: Four closely interlinked thematic work packages on child health promotion, prevention and public health measures addressing the mental and somatic health consequences and side effects of the pandemic in children and adolescents. (3) Information exchange and services within the NUM: Four closely interlinked central work packages with overarching functions for the coverCHILD consortium and the NUM network. The participating locations and scientists are in continuous dialogue and meet regularly in cross-project and topic-related meetings. This involves an interdisciplinary exchange between paediatrics, child and adolescent psychiatry and infrastructure funding lines such as the Medical Informatics Initiative (MII). The project is also in close dialogue with other NUM sub-projects, e.g. PREPARED, through joint use cases.
coverCHILD is a large-scale research project involving all German university hospitals and key stakeholders in the fields of paediatrics and child and adolescent psychiatry. The coverCHILD project and the work packages were presented at the kick-off meeting in Hamburg in September 2022. In 10 work packages, we worked together at various levels to record, understand and share the effects of the coronavirus pandemic based on evidence and to provide child-friendly solutions and recommendations for action for future crises. The study platform in NFDI4Health enables the evaluation of therapeutic interventions and promotes the exchange between study leaders. A method toolbox for conducting studies with children and adolescents with paediatric and child and adolescent psychiatric expertise was developed as an internet-based platform. Psychometric data from children and adolescents were integrated into a dashboard in order to visualise changes in the frequency of diagnoses in a timely manner. The participation of children was promoted through online self-help materials and apps on mental health, among other things, and children and young people themselves were asked about their experiences during the coronavirus pandemic in qualitative studies. Numerous collaborations within and outside the NUM were established through coverCHILD. The project will end in December 2023 with a meeting of the work package leaders in Hamburg. Further work on individual project components is planned in other NUM sub-projects (NUM-RDP and NUKLEUS).