WH&Y Professors Kate Steinbeck, Rebecca Ivers and colleagues demonstrate that the rate of mental health presentations to Emergency Departments increased significantly in NSW between 2010 and 2014, particularly presentations by adolescents. Urgent action is needed to provide better access to adolescent mental health services in the community and to enhance Emergency Department models of mental health care. The underlying drivers of this trend should be investigated to improve mental health care.
Professors Susan Sawyer and George Patton explore why current mental health services are failing to provide alternatives to emergency departments for adolescents in crisis.
Partners
We acknowledge the funding support of the NHMRC and the contributions of our collaborators across Australia.
