There is a good article in Bournemouth Echo in which a mother recounts long delays in
obtaining mental health services for her daughter who had been sexually abused.
The young person was suicidal, yet it is reported that the
family waited eight weeks for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services
(CAMHS) to allocate her a support worker, despite the school and
the family doctor endorsing the mother’s entreaties for urgent help.
After an attempt to take her own life, the young person
was rushed to hospital. The mother reports that ambulance and hospital staff
were amazed to discover that the family was not getting any specialist
support..
This poignant story coincides with a report from the House
of Commons Health Committee, which recounts "increased
waiting times for CAMHS services" and "increased referral thresholds" and “challenges in maintaining service quality”. These are said to result from rising demand and
reductions in funding.
Underfunding mental health services for children and young
people is a false economy. The long term costs and consequences of untreated
psychiatric conditions in childhood and adolescence are enormous: long term ill
health, under performance in education and work, dependence on adult mental
health services.
And the responsibility of society for children and young
people who are abused and neglected does not end with the ending of the abuse.
Timely and high quality therapeutic services to treat the consequences and mitigate the impact of being
the victim of abuse and neglect should be a right of every child and young
person.
