Pediatric Provider Experiences with Implementation of Routine Mental Health Screening

Area of Science:

• Pediatric primary care
• Mental health screening
• Quality improvement initiatives

Background:

• Universal mental health (MH) screening is underutilized by pediatric providers.
• Limited understanding exists regarding provider experiences with implementing MH screening tools.
• This study addresses the gap in knowledge on barriers and facilitators to universal MH screening.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe barriers and facilitators to universal MH screening implementation in pediatric primary care.
• To assess the perceived impact of MH screening on identification of concerns.
• To evaluate provider impressions of a quality improvement (QI) Learning Collaborative focused on MH screening.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative analysis of postproject interviews with 107 primary care clinicians from a QI Learning Collaborative on MH screening.
• Interviews were transcribed and analyzed using constant comparative qualitative analysis.

Main Results:

• Providers reported increased identification of MH concerns due to screening.
• Key facilitators included clinic and leadership buy-in and EMR integration.
• Barriers included provider beliefs, parent literacy, referral challenges, and insurance gaps.

Conclusions:

• Sustainable integration of universal MH screening is achievable in primary care settings.
• QI collaboratives can improve MH screening uptake.
• Findings support the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations for pediatric MH screening.