More than 400,000 children and young people a month are being treated for mental health problems, the highest number on record, raising warnings of an unprecedented crisis in the well-being of those under 18.
Experts say Covid has severely exacerbated problems such as anxiety, depression and self-harm among schoolchildren and the “relentless and unsustainable” continued rise in their need for help could overwhelm those already spread. National Health Service services.
The last Figures from the National Health Service show “open referrals” – troubled children and young people in England receiving treatment or waiting to start care – reached 420,314 in February, the highest number since records began in 2016.
The total has increased by 147,853 since February 2020, a 54% increase, and by 80,096 over the last year alone, a 24% jump. January’s tally of 411,132 cases was the first time the number had surpassed 400,000.
Mental health charities have welcomed the fact that an unprecedented number of young people are receiving psychological support. But they fear the numbers are the tip of the iceberg of the true number of people in need of care, and that many more struggling under-18s are being denied help because of arbitrary eligibility criteria.
“Open referrals” are children under the age of 18 who are being seen by Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) or are waiting to see a specialist, having been assessed as needing help against treatment thresholds. GPs, teachers and mental health charities believe the criteria are too strict, excluding many who are not considered sick enough, and amount to rationing care.
“There is an unprecedented crisis in young people’s mental health, further evidenced by these record numbers of young people needing help from the NHS,” said Olly Parker, director of external affairs at Young Minds. “The record number of children and young people receiving NHS care tells us that the crisis in young people’s mental health is a wave breaking now.”
While it is positive that more and more under-18s are receiving psychological support, he said, “the rise in the number of young people seeking help from the NHS is relentless and unsustainable. In the last two years, young people have experienced isolation, disruption to their education and reduced access to support, including from counselors and GPs. All of these things have greatly impacted his mental health, but these numbers are just the tip of the iceberg and will continue to rise.”
He said many young people were reaching a crisis point before they could get the treatment they needed.
Evidence from the children’s commissioner for England has shown that while help from CAMHS is available within six days of referral in certain areas, elsewhere families have to wait up to 81 days before they see their child, even though some self-harmed or had suicidal thoughts.
AN physician survey published last month by the youth mental health charity stem4 found that half said CAMHS was rejecting half of the referrals they made of under-18s suffering from anxiety, depression, conduct disorder and self-harm because their symptoms were not known. considered serious enough. In one case, a 12-year-old boy found with a ligature in her room was denied help because there were no marks on his neck.
Nihara Krause, a consultant clinical psychologist and founder of stem4, said that while more children under 18 were receiving help, it was not clear from the figures how many received effective treatment. “Teachers and GPs say that children and children with mental health problems are being turned away in record numbers because their difficulties do not meet the high threshold for treatment, or are stuck on long waiting lists. These latest figures also lack the real details to justify claiming that there has been a noticeable improvement in access to effective treatment. They just show a greater need.”
He said that not only the prevalence, but also the severity and complexity of youth mental health problems had increased in recent years. Additionally, covid-induced loneliness, increased time spent online, disrupted routines, and exposure to family stress have increased levels of distress.
Catherine Roche, CEO of Place2Be, which provides advice to 450 primary and secondary schools across the UK with 250,000 pupils, said: “What we have seen from our frontline services in UK schools is a growing number of young people struggling with anxiety, self-harm, eating difficulties and suicidal thoughts.”
A survey of school principals and other staff by Place2Be and the National Association of School Principals released in February found that a large majority had seen increases in mental health problems among students since the start of the academic year, including low self-esteem (86%). , depression (76%) and sustained feelings of anger (68%).
Roche urged the NHS to provide far more early intervention services to help troubled young people as soon as they show signs of distress, before their mental health deteriorates.
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Claire Murdoch, National Mental Health Director for NHS England, said: “The toll from the pandemic has inevitably had an impact on the nation’s mental health, with more young people accessing NHS services than ever before. As these figures show, demand continues to skyrocket, with a third more children treated in February this year compared to February 2020.”
She said the NHS had responded by expanding mental health teams in 4,700 schools and universities and setting up 24/7 mental health crisis telephone support services for all ages, which now receive 20,000 calls to month.
NHS data also shows that a shortage of mental health beds means that some under-16s who are sick enough to be admitted for mental health care must be treated in adult mental health wards, despite that the guide says that should never happen. In February, an unspecified number of children under the age of 16 had spent 50 days in adult wards.
