EmCARE Applications in Managing the Emotional Skills of Children and Adolescents in the United Arab Emirates

Anxiety disorders are common among children and adolescents because of the nature of their developmental stage, which requires significant skill development and adaptation to many life transitions. A recent cross-sectional study conducted in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with children aged 10–19 years (N=968) reported the overall prevalence was anxiety disorders of 28%. Of the whole sample, 37.1% had panic disorder, 45.5% had separation anxiety, 20% had social anxiety, and 36.5% had school avoidance. This highlights that age-appropriate initiatives are urgently needed to reduce the high rate of anxiety-related disorders. In the UAE, there are additional risk factors for the development of mental health problems, particularly among young people (i.e., consanguineous marriages, large families, and a large youth population in the active phase of development). This further reinforces the need to actively initiate intervention to address these issues among the youth population before they become entrenched in their adult personalities. According to World Health Organization reports, almost half of mental health conditions develop before age 14 years. The UAE healthcare system has identified a clear need to further develop existing mental health services.