There is an increasing focus on the health of our children with several initiatives implemented to increase physical activity, improved knowledge of 'healthy' food groups and address the growing problem of obesity. But is enough being done to identify and treat child mental health?
"A study published in the British Medical Journal recommends that pupils should be asked to complete regular tests throughout their schooling to assess their emotional and psychological health. The checks, administered by school counsellors or specially trained staff, would identify children with depression, anxiety, anger and disruptive behaviour.
Researchers said three-quarters of adult mental illness began in childhood, and that monitoring and cases at a younger age could mean earlier treatment, and intervention before problems worsened.
But charities were cautious about the idea - with some saying that seven was too young to identify serious mental health problems, while others said it was no use diagnosing such illness unless more services were set up to help young people.
In the BMJ paper, Simon Williams, a clinical fellow in public health from Cambridge University, wrote:
“Offering routine mental health checks in schools is one way to ensure that all children get equal access to resources for the prevention or early diagnosis of mental health problems. The next step should be a trial to pilot and evaluate the short term outcomes of a routine mental health check in UK schools.”
Researchers said such tests, which ask children to respond to a series of questions about their emotional state, could be administered at a cost of around £27 per child. Parents could be offered the opportunity to “opt-out” from the programme, they said.
Mental health problems are estimated to cost the UK more than £100bn a year, including £21 billion on health and social care.
Researchers said that while many mental health problems are more common in lower socio-economic groups, others, such as anxiety, occurred at least as much among middle-class families. A universal screening programme would mean children did not feel stigmatised by being asked to undergo tests.
Mental health charities expressed reservations about the proposal. Paul Jenkins, CEO of the charity Rethink Mental Illness said: “While I agree with the principle that mental health should be taken just as seriously as physical health by schools…attempts to identify mental health problems should focus more on teenagers, than younger children.”
It is estimated that one in four adults will experience mental health problems during their lives. Is early intervention, starting with primary school, something worth considering?
Read the article in full here:
www.telegraph.co.uk/journalists/laura-donnelly/10330960/Call-for-mental-health-checks-on-all-scho... Image:
www.annalsofpsychotherapy.com/articles/2008/summer/img/lonley%20girl%20spread_opt.jpegIt is proposed that routine mental health checks should be offered to pupils throughout their schooling