Impact of COVID-19 on Young Children and Families in Jamaica

Figures & data

Table 1. Caregiver ability to meet socio-economic needs pre- and post-COVID-19.

Socio-Economic Needs	Pre-COVID-19			Post-COVID-19
	Very Difficult	Difficult	Not Difficult	Very Difficult	Difficult	Not Difficult
Ability to afford food	3.6%	42.6%	53.8%	18.5%	50.2%	31.3%
Ability to afford clothing	2.8%	36.3%	60.8%	17.1%	27.3%	55.7%
Ability to pay rent/mortgage	3.6%	31.0%	65.5%	14.2%	35.6%	50.2%
Ability to pay utility bills	7.6%	44.0%	48.3%	23.7%	47.7%	28.6%
Ability to pay phone/internet bills	6.9%	44.8%	48.3%	21.4%	49.9%	28.7%
Ability to provide goods for children	4.4%	43.9%	51.7%	19.1%	40.6%	40.4%

Table 2. Caregiver ability to meet socio-economic needs by household socio-economic status.

Socio-Economic Needs	Degree of Difficulty	Modern Toilet Facilities (%)		P value	Crowding (%)		P value
		Yes	No		No	Yes
Ability to Afford Food	Very Difficult	68.1	31.9	.039	30.4	69.6	.006
	Difficult	76.5	23.5		40.3	59.7
	Not Difficult	80.6	19.4		49.2	50.8
Ability to Afford Clothing	Very Difficult	59.5	40.5	.000	31.3	68.7	.019
	Difficult	66.4	33.6		37.3	62.7
	Not Difficult	79.2	20.8		47.3	52.7
Ability to Pay Rent/Mortgage	Very Difficult	75.0	25.0	.473	38.7	61.3	.361
	Difficult	80.0	20.0		40.8	59.2
	Not Difficult	84.1	15.9		50.0	50.0
Ability to Pay Utility Bills	Very Difficult	68.8	31.3	.006	36.2	63.8	.124
	Difficult	76.2	23.8		40.5	59.5
	Not Difficult	83.9	16.1		47.8	52.2
Ability to Pay Phone/Internet Bills	Very Difficult	74.3	25.7	.627	33.3	66.7	.033
	Difficult	75.8	24.2		40.1	59.9
	Not Difficult	78.7	21.3		48.5	51.5
Ability to Provide Goods for Children	Very Difficult	70.9	29.1	.044	34.9	65.1	.057
	Difficult	75.1	24.9		37.4	62.6
	Not Difficult	81.9	18.1		46.6	53.4

Table 3. Sources of educational/learning material in the home by school level.

School Level	Sources of Educational/Learning Material
	Books in Home		Schoolbooks		Television/Radio		Ministry of Education Web-Based Programs		Other Web-Based Programs		Other
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
Pre-School (n = 157)	90	57.3	119	75.8	42	26.8	9	5.7	11	7.0	49	31.2
Primary (n = 648)	261	40.2	593	91.5	160	24.7	102	15.7	39	6.0	267	41.2
Secondary (n = 246)	56	22.8	199	80.9	54	22.0	47	19.1	16	6.5	77	31.3

Table 4. Frequency of receiving educational/learning material from schools by school level.

School Level	Frequency of Receiving Educational/Learning Material From Schools
	Every Day		Most Days (3–5 days/week)		Occasional Days (1–2 days/week)		Never
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
Pre-School (n = 143)	63	44.1	13	9.1	26	18.2	41	28.7
Primary (n = 634)	458	72.2	89	14.0	39	6.2	48	7.6
Secondary (n = 235)	142	60.4	48	20.4	24	10.2	21	8.9

Table 5. Perceptions of support required for children.

Perceptions of Support Required for Children	%
More access to children’s teachers by internet/phone	63.9%
More access to internet/Wi-Fi for education	61.6%
Greater variety of educational programs provided by Ministry of Education	61.2%
More access to education on COVID-19 for children	52.9%
More access to creative programs	49.3%
More access to educational programs other than that provided by the Ministry of Education	46.7%
More leisure and play activities and toys in the home	35.7%
Other	5.9%

Table 6. Perceptions of support required for adults.

Perceptions of Support Required for Adults	%
More access to parent support programs on how to teach children at home	73.2%
Direct financial support, because of lost income	67.0%
More access to parent support programs on how to manage children’s anxiety and other behaviors	60.7%
More access to programs/counselors to support my mental health and relieve stress	49.5%
More access to leisure activities to improve my physical health	42.5%
More access to information about COVID-19; I need to know everything	42.2%
My workplace being set up to facilitate work from home	19.7%
Less information about COVID 19; too much information is scary and worrying	15.6%
Other	2.2%