Fragmentation in adolescent health care provision

Area of Science:

• Adolescent mental health
• Integrated care models
• Health systems research

Background:

• Current adolescent mental health services face structural challenges.
• Fragmented care impacts long-term engagement and trust.
• Developmental needs of adolescents are often overlooked in systemic approaches.

Purpose of the Study:

• To advocate for integrated, developmentally informed mental health care models for adolescents.
• To highlight the need for addressing structural misalignments across health, education, and social care systems.
• To promote a whole-system, lifespan perspective in understanding adolescent admissions.

Main Methods:

• This is an editorial, presenting an argument and perspective.
• It synthesizes existing knowledge on adolescent mental health care systems.
• It calls for a paradigm shift in service delivery.

Main Results:

• Integrated models can improve adolescent mental health outcomes.
• A lifespan framework is essential for understanding varied admission reasons and impacts.
• Addressing structural issues is key to enhancing care engagement and trust.

Conclusions:

• Adolescent mental health care requires integrated, developmentally sensitive, and systemic approaches.
• A lifespan perspective is critical for effective intervention and support.
• Realigning health, education, and social care systems is paramount for adolescent well-being.