On 2 July, the WHO Office on Quality of Care and Patient Safety in Athens, in collaboration with WHO European Mental Health Flagship, is launching for consultation its new quality standards to improve the quality of child and adolescent mental health care. The standards were developed in collaboration with the Pan-European Mental Health Coalition and with support from the Government of Greece.
Why we need quality standards for child and adolescent mental health care
Globally, child and adolescent mental health is a key priority. One in 7 adolescents experience a mental disorder, while suicide is the fourth leading cause of death in 15–19-year-olds. Evidence suggests that the burden of mental disorders for children and adolescents has increased in the past 30 years (1990–2019), particularly for anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. Today, countries are still struggling to respond to the mental health needs of children and adolescents.
During the first meeting of the WHO European Pan-European Coalition in May 2022, improving the quality of care for children, adolescents, and young people was highlighted as a key priority, with requests for tools to measure and standardize the quality of child and adolescent mental health care across the WHO European Region. In response, the WHO Athens Quality of Care Office and the Mental Health Flagship team joined forces to develop quality standards for children and young persons’ mental health.
The standards, based on literature and perspectives from young people, parents and carers, and providers, set out a vision of what good-quality care for child and adolescent mental health looks like. They allow for assessment of the quality of child and adolescent mental health services and help to prioritize areas for quality improvement. The overall goal is to provide evidence-based content co-created with stakeholders, and set ambitious yet achievable performance benchmarks that are feasible to implement and can be linked to other WHO resources and tools.
Participate in the review of the standards
- Who can review the standards?
We are particularly interested to hear feedback from children, young people and parents/carers, as well as those providing child and adolescent mental health care. However, anyone is welcome to review the quality standards and provide feedback.
- How do I review the standards?
The document for consultation, along with the survey to provide your feedback, can be found here:
Materials for review: Quality of care standards for child and adolescent mental health
- What is the time frame for reviewing the standards?
The consultation will be open for 10 weeks, from 2 July to 10 September 2024.