There are several aspects to your question. I agree with you. The numbers and the rankings are not what I am most concerned about. We discussed deaths, for example among highly premature infants. I think we need to get away from the numbers and begin with the outcomes. We need to see what we want for our children and how we can have a real impact. We need to ask why there are still gaps and how they can be addressed.
Unfortunately, whether what's involved is mental health or child protection services, the system has perhaps always been accustomed to taking action when the problems had become clear and obvious, and when it was too late to do anything about them. We need to return children to the top of our priority list and focus on prevention. It's easy to say that we're going to work on preventing anxiety in the schools. While there's nothing the matter with that, I believe prevention has to be at the societal level.
I'm thinking of some parents who, morning, noon and night, don't have meals with their children. This might seem to be a minor point, but prevention is also to be found in sound family values that help children develop properly. We're talking here about teaching people to adopt healthy eating practices, to sit down to eat properly, and to have a healthy lifestyle. It may sound trivial, but it's what has the greatest impact in the everyday lives of parents.
Children with ADHD do better when there's a family structure, some form of regularity in everyday life. When children engage in outdoor activities, and get moving, the use of medications drops. The same is the case for ADHD and developmental problems. That's where prevention lies.
Prevention can also take the form of raising awareness in society. What I'm talking about here is social networks. Children have a cell phone when they're 10 years old. They learn to use it when they are very young. A child's right to have a smart phone of their own has become a societal norm. Why? It has to do with parental anxiety. As a result, children are exposed to cyber predators. They also are constantly exposed to images of perfection. The result is a form of dependence that becomes central to their life. Life has become virtual and faster.
Prevention therefore requires a much broader approach. Adjusting these parameters is what might eventually lead to results. Problems need to be dealt with when they appear, but it's also important to try and prevent them by exploring new avenues.