Säuglings‑, Kinder- und Jugendlichen- (SKJ) Psychotherapien während der Covid-19 Pandemie: Ergebnisse einer Studie unter psychodynamischen Psychotherapeut*innen in Österreich

OBJECTIVE: This explorative study examines the situation of infant, child and adolescent psychotherapies during the Covid-19 pandemic in Austria. METHOD: 23 psychodynamic psychotherapists participated in an online questionnaire that generated quantitative and qualitative data. Open questions on subjectively perceived changes were analysed using qualitative content analysis. RESULTS: Overall, the number of psychotherapies decreased, especially for infant and toddler psychotherapies. The number of child and adolescent psychotherapies initially decreased but increased after the first lockdown. Great demand was recently perceived for adolescent psychotherapies. Adaptation to changing conditions and settings required great flexibility on the part of psychotherapists, who increasingly reached their limits as the pandemic progressed. Respondents observed an increase in symptoms as well as an increased need for work with parents and networking with institutions. CONCLUSIONS: Remote psychotherapy cannot replace in-person psychotherapy, especially with younger children. Results indicate a lack of treatment options for this target group. This, as well as the observed increase in symptoms in older children and adolescents, is a major issue from a socio-political and health economic point of view and urgently requires further expansion of psycho-social services and psychotherapeutic treatment options.