Life after CAMHS
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Life after CAMHS: experiences of the end of care at child and adolescent mental health services
IRAS ID
251863
Contact name
Swaran Singh
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Warwick
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 4 months, 31 days
Research summary
Mental health services are divided into separate specialties for children and adults. When a young person reaches the upper age limit of child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) at around the age of 16-18, care should be transferred to an adult mental health service (AMHS) if they are still unwell. Existing research into transition in mental health services has found that it is poorly managed for the majority of young people, with an estimated two-thirds of young people not being transitioned, even though they still require care. Transition research has focused on young people who have made the transition to AMHS, whilst the outcomes of those who do not transition are unknown. These young people are said to have fallen through the gap between services. This research forms part of a PhD which aims to address this gap in the current literature and investigate the outcomes of young people with mental illness who do not successfully transition to adult services. This PhD is linked to MILESTONE – an EU project following up over 1000 young people approaching the CAMHS age boundary for 24 months. It will use some questionnaire data collected as part of the MILESTONE Study and conduct additional interviews with MILESTONE participants from the UK. Resource use and health economic data collected as part of MILESTONE will also be used to explore the costs of young people falling through the gap between CAMHS and AMHS. Results from this study will address an important gap in the existing literature regarding what happens to young people who fall through the gap between services, and provide evidence to suggest how these young people should be best supported.
REC name
West Midlands - Black Country Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/WM/0337
Date of REC Opinion
29 Nov 2018
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion