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The number of young people admitted to general wards in England with mental health concerns has soared by 65% in the ten years to 2022, leaving thousands of children without the specialist care they need. Research results suggest that this may not be the case.
Research published on Wednesday found that between 2012 and 2022, hospitalizations for “all causes” increased by 10%, while the number of hospitalizations for mental health reasons among 5- to 18-year-olds increased by 2. The number of deaths jumped from 44,198 to 39,925.
Most countries around the world are grappling with a significant increase in demand for mental health care, an issue highlighted by the coronavirus pandemic. The huge rise in cases in England comes as the NHS struggles to meet record demand across its services.
Researchers at University College London said their findings have “important implications for international health policy regarding the provision of care for children and young people admitted to acute care facilities due to mental health concerns.” It provides a message.”
The rise in mental health admissions in England was greatest among girls aged 11 to 15, with an increase of 9,091 to 19,349, or around 113 per cent, says the first study to analyze national trends in acute care wards. He said that.
One of the biggest drivers of the overall increase was an approximately 515 percent increase in hospitalizations related to eating disorders, according to a paper in the Lancet Child and Adolescent Health journal.
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The researchers also found that, although absolute numbers were still low, “female self-harm rates were significantly higher” in this group, and hospitalizations among children aged 5 to 10 increased sharply.
Leigh Hudson, senior author of the study and clinical associate professor at UCL’s Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, said acute care wards are ideal for young people with mental health concerns, particularly physical health problems such as hunger. He said it is an important place to care for young people who also have problems. From eating disorders.
“However, the increase in intensity that we are describing presents a real challenge for acute wards, both for patients and their families and for the staff who support them,” he said.
Citing recent findings from the Health Service Safety Review Board, an arm’s length organization, researchers found that 13 of the 18 pediatric wards surveyed had a “relevant” ward environment. It was deemed “unsafe” to care for children and young people with “high-risk behaviors”. to mental health concerns. ”
The researchers suggested that while COVID-19 is contributing to the deterioration of young people’s mental health, an increase was recorded each year across the ten years studied.
“Although early data suggests that cases have not declined to pre-pandemic levels, further research was needed to examine how trends changed as the pandemic subsided.” added.
To protect mental health spending, NHS England’s Integrated Care Board, which manages budgets in different parts of the country, is now ensuring that investment in mental health increases at a faster pace than the overall budget. are asked to do so.
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But Mr Hudson called for “improved collaboration between physical and mental health professionals across hospitals and community teams, including, for example, This includes appropriate provision of psychiatrists and nurses with mental health training.”
Researchers have not reached firm conclusions about whether difficulty accessing support early in the community, before mental health problems escalate, is partly to blame for the surge in hospitalizations. There wasn’t.
However, Hudson added that the data clearly revealed a “population-level increase in mental health conditions.”
Claire Murdoch, NHS England’s national head of mental health, said treatment and awareness of such conditions had improved significantly over the past decade. The impact of social media on body image. ”
The NHS has hundreds of mental health teams in schools and 24/7 crisis support in place, but to reduce the risk of harm “there may be times when it is in a person’s best interests to be admitted to hospital”. Yes,” she said. Mr Murdoch added that despite the increased demand for services to deal with eating disorders, more than four-fifths of children started acute treatment within a week.
