Long wait for NHS mental healthcare has ‘stark consequences for children’s life chances’

One in three child and adolescent consultant psychiatrist posts in England are vacant, according to a “shocking” analysis laying bare the workforce crisis that experts say is fuelling “unacceptable” long waits for NHS care. Dr Elaine Lockhart, a consultant paediatric liaison psychiatrist who works in NHS child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS), describes the frustrating but rewarding daily battle to meet the soaring demand and to help those most in need.

At a time when children’s mental health is supposed to be a public policy priority, waiting times for children’s and adolescent mental health services are unacceptably long. Some children wait more than two years to be treated. And that delay can have stark consequences for their mental health and their life chances.

Some of our most vulnerable children are ending up in crisis, needing urgent referrals and emergency care when they should have been treated effectively months before and allowed to enjoy what they will miss out on: their childhood.

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Source: The Guardian, 28 November 2024