Better mental health services for young people: responsibility, partnerships and projects

This paper argues that adolescent psychiatry is best linked with child psychiatry and opposes separate youth mental health programmes for 12-25-year-olds. It reports on the current status of services and considers how adult mental health services (AMHS) can improve services for young adults (18-25-year-olds).

Factors in development, psychopathology, prevention, training and service systems are reviewed to suggest that current child and adolescent mental health service systems (CAMHS) are appropriate for 0-17-year-olds. Improvements in CAMHS are described from a Victorian perspective, including the model of specialist clinical programmes or teams for specific patient populations. Mechanisms are outlined for AMHS to better assist young adults from 18 to 25 years of age.

The model of clinical projects or clinical programme teams, developed in partnership with primary health and others, is a suitable vehicle to help AMHS to improve clinical services to their young adult populations. These may be funded from a variety of sources, including re-engineering existing service resources.

Such developments complement the work of specialist research units and build local competencies. More programme development and evaluation is needed, which will require the support of the College and State and Commonwealth Mental Health Branches.