Pathways to Child and Adolescent mental health services. Version 1.
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Pathways to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services: a qualitative study of parents experiences.
IRAS ID
152441
Contact name
Donna Maria Mc Connell
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 4 months, 30 days
Research summary
Parents are frequently reporting barriers to accessing child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). For instance, longer waiting times for appointments, problems with transport or having to take time out of work to attend the appointment (Owens, Hoagwood, Horwitz, et al., 2002).As it is the parents who are more likely to initiate the referral than the young person, these barriers can have a significant impact on accessing these services (Sayal, Tischler, Coope, et al., 2010). It is therefore vital that that any barriers to parental access to CAMHS services, need to be clearly understood by all mental health professionals working within these services (Owens, et al., 2010). Therefore, making it crucial that the views of these parents are obtained and CAMHS services re-evaluated (Bamford Review, 2006; The Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority, 2011). As parents are viewed as 'key help seekers', it is also crucial that parents are knowledgeable in mental health literacy. In turn this could help to identify mental health problems and ultimately seeking help for their child (Leavey, Galway, Rondou & Logan, 2009).
In 2011, a review of the Child and Adolescent Services in Northern Ireland (CAMHS) showed that 27 per cent of parents indicated that the ‘service’ was not accessible. Although, some parents indicated that they had never heard of 'CAMHS'; they highlighted that the main reason for this lack of accessibility was due to their GP. For example; requiring a few visits to their GP before a referral to CAMHS was considered. Twenty two per cent of those parents across all the Health Trusts in Northern Ireland stated; the length of waiting times was ‘unacceptable’. (The Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority, 2011).
Brief method.
1 to 1 semi-structured interviews
Maximum of 12 participants; all of whom will have accessed CAMHS services in the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust.REC name
HSC REC B
REC reference
15/NI/0007
Date of REC Opinion
21 Apr 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion