TORONTO — A new study shows a growing number of Canadian children and youth are seeking help for mental health disorders at hospital emergency rooms and more are being admitted for in-patient treatment.
The study by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) found ER visits for mental health issues among young people aged five to 24 jumped 45 per cent between 2006–2007 and 2013–2014.
And over the same period, rates of in-patient hospitalizations that involved at least one overnight stay rose 37 per cent.
The study found that the highest use of these hospital services was among youth aged 15 to 17, with ER visits rising by 53 per cent and in-patient hospitalizations up by 74 per cent.
Ten- to 14-year-olds also experienced a major increase in hospital-service use, with ER visits jumping by 68 per cent and hospitalizations growing by 64 per cent.
While more young people may be seeking help from hospitals because of diminishing stigma around mental health disorders, CIHI's Kathleen Morris says the increase may also reflect lack of access to community-based programs.
"What we don't know is whether the increase in hospital services is due to kids and youth having trouble getting the right services in the community setting," said Morris, CIHI's director of health system analysis and emerging issues.
"We just don't have eyes on how the community setting is really being used.
"The ideal system would have most services provided in the community by nurses, family doctors and social workers, and have the hospitals provide short-term care for the most complex patients."
The study released Thursday also found that a higher proportion of 15- to 24-year-olds are being prescribed medications for such mental health diagnoses as depression, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, based on data from British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
