Background: High rejection rates for referrals to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) are common. The most cited reasons for rejection are that the child does not have a clinical need for assessment and poor quality of the referrals. However, studies of interventions aimed at improving appropriateness of referrals are sparse. Methods: In this randomized feasibility trial, we tested if the Development and Well-Being Assessment (DAWBA) as an adjunct to referral letters could improve accuracy of referral decisions made by CAMHS. The primary outcome of the study was the proportion of “correct” referral decisions. Results: The study included 160 children referred to CAMHS. Almost all (95.6%) participants fulfilled criteria for a mental disorder and 82.1% also reported high impact of symptoms. Compared to the group who did not complete the DAWBA, referral decisions for the DAWBA group showed higher sensitivity (0.63 vs. 0.83), specificity (0.30 vs. 0.42), and negative predictive value (0.14 vs. 0.36) as well as slightly higher positive predictive value (0.81 vs. 0.86). Conclusions: The use of the DAWBA as an adjunct to standard referral letters could lead to more correct referral decisions and reduce the proportion of wrongful rejection referrals to CAMHS.

Introduction There has been a steep increase in referrals to child and adolescent psychiatric (CAP) services across Western countries. To fit CAP services to the increasing demand, it is important to gain more knowledge about the background for the increase in referrals and to investigate changes in referral patterns over time. Methods Cross-sectional observational study comparing referrals to outpatient CAP services from 2005, 2010 and 2018 to the only CAP center in the North Denmark Region. Results There was a 3.9 times increase in referrals from 2005 to 2018. Referrals for disorders with onset in early childhood (primarily autism and ADHD/ADD) increased from 2005 to 2010 but decreased from 2010 to 2018. There was an increase in the proportion of referrals for emotional disorders from 2010 to 2018. The proportion of girls referred for disorders with onset in early childhood increased from 2005 to 2018. The referral age for these disorders remained relatively high, and this was most pronounced for girls. Conclusions There has been significant changes in the referral pattern to outpatient CAP services. The increasing referral rates for girls for disorders with onset in early childhood could indicate improved ability in primary settings to recognize these symptoms in girls. However, late referral to CAP services for these disorders remains an issue. Educational services play an increasing role in referring children for these disorders, and it is important to ensure that they have the competences to identify children in need of assessment by CAP services.

Aim: To investigate parental help-seeking patterns prior to referral to outpatient child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS), and whether type of symptoms or duration of mental health problems prior to referral influence help-seeking. Setting: Child mental health services in Denmark involve several sectors collaborating based on stepped-care principles. Access to CAMHS is free of charge but requires a formal referral. Methods: In this cross-sectional observational study, parents of 250 children were interviewed about pathways to outpatient CAMHS using the Children’s Services Interview. Results: The median parent-reported duration of mental health problems prior to referral to CAMHS was 6.0 (IQR 3.4–8.5) years for children referred for neurodevelopmental disorders compared to 2.8 (IQR 1.0–6.5) years for children referred for emotional disorders. Educational services were the first help-seeking contact for the majority (57.5%) but referrals to CAMHS were most frequently from healthcare services (56.4%), predominantly general practitioners. Educational services played a greater part in help-seeking pathways for children referred for neurodevelopmental disorders. Conclusion: The majority of children referred to CAMHS have mental health problems for years before referral. The delay in time-to-referral was most pronounced for children referred for neurodevelopmental disorders. Help-seeking pathways differ by symptom duration and type of symptoms.

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in various challenges for child and adolescent mental health researchers, and particularly for those at the beginning of their career. We emphasise the challenges and opportunities from the individual perspective of trainee psychiatrists, psychologists, and doctoral or post-doctoral scholars in child and adolescent mental health from diverse settings across the globe.

Age-related metabolic and renal changes predispose older people to an increased risk of diabetes mellitus and diabetic kidney disease, respectively. As the prevalence of the ageing population is increasing, because of increased life expectancy, the prevalence of older people with diabetic kidney disease is likely to increase. Diabetic kidney disease is associated with an increased risk of adverse outcomes and increased costs to healthcare systems. The management includes promotion of a healthy lifestyle and control of cardiovascular risk factors such as hyperglycaemia, hypertension and dyslipidaemia. Older people are a heterogeneous group of people from a community-living fit and independent person to a fully dependent individual residing in a care home. Therefore, management in this age group should be based on a patient's functional level adopting tight metabolic control in the fit individual and relaxed targets in the frail person. However, despite the maximum available therapy, a significant number of patients with diabetic kidney disease still progress to renal failure and experience adverse cardiac outcomes. Therefore, future research is required to explore methods of early detection of diabetic kidney disease and to investigate novel therapeutic interventions to further improve the outcomes.Age-related metabolic and renal changes predispose older people to an increased risk of diabetes mellitus and diabetic kidney disease, respectively. As the prevalence of the ageing population is increasing, because of increased life expectancy, the prevalence of older people with diabetic kidney disease is likely to increase. Diabetic kidney disease is associated with an increased risk of adverse outcomes and increased costs to healthcare systems. The management includes promotion of a healthy lifestyle and control of cardiovascular risk factors such as hyperglycaemia, hypertension and dyslipidaemia. Older people are a heterogeneous group of people from a community-living fit and independent person to a fully dependent individual residing in a care home. Therefore, management in this age group should be based on a patient's functional level adopting tight metabolic control in the fit individual and relaxed targets in the frail person. However, despite the maximum available therapy, a significant number of patients with diabetic kidney disease still progress to renal failure and experience adverse cardiac outcomes. Therefore, future research is required to explore methods of early detection of diabetic kidney disease and to investigate novel therapeutic interventions to further improve the outcomes.Age-related metabolic and renal changes predispose older people to an increased risk of diabetes mellitus and diabetic kidney disease, respectively. As the prevalence of the ageing population is increasing, because of increased life expectancy, the prevalence of older people with diabetic kidney disease is likely to increase. Diabetic kidney disease is associated with an increased risk of adverse outcomes and increased costs to healthcare systems. The management includes promotion of a healthy lifestyle and control of cardiovascular risk factors such as hyperglycaemia, hypertension and dyslipidaemia. Older people are a heterogeneous group of people from a community-living fit and independent person to a fully dependent individual residing in a care home. Therefore, management in this age group should be based on a patient's functional level adopting tight metabolic control in the fit individual and relaxed targets in the frail person. However, despite the maximum available therapy, a significant number of patients with diabetic kidney disease still progress to renal failure and experience adverse cardiac outcomes. Therefore, future research is required to explore methods of early detection of diabetic kidney disease and to investigate novel therapeutic interventions to further improve the outcomes.