Charity urges action on 'warning sign' of missed mental health appointments

Research by The Children's Society has found that young people missed approximately 157,000 appointments with specialist Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in 2016.

The charity said missed appointments can be a "critical warning sign" that young people are at serious risk of harm or in need of extra support.

But it found that mental health professionals often dismiss a missed appointment as either the fault of the young person, or an unavoidable consequence of a struggling system.

"When children and young people miss an appointment, it can be a critical warning sign that they are at serious risk," the report, titled Stick with Us, states.

"It can be a sign that the system is not working for them.

"It can be a sign that they need extra support to be ready to engage in treatment. We cannot safeguard and help young people with mental-ill health if we cannot see them."

"If we do not properly engage our most vulnerable young people in their treatment and make mental health services work for them, we are storing up problems for the future, at great cost to both society and to young people themselves."

The report adds that as well as young people potentially missing out on vital support, there is also a substantial financial impact, with missed appointments costing CAMHS more than £45m a year.

The report recommends CAMHS should be required by law to follow up on missed appointments. The charity wants this to be introduced into the forthcoming Mental Health Bill, as well as maximum waiting times for initial CAMHS assessments.

It also calls on the Department of Health to strengthen guidance around missed appointments, stressing the importance of follow-up enquiries.

Meanwhile, it wants health regulator the Care Quality Commission to monitor and assess how CAMHS providers respond to and look to prevent missed appointments. This should include a specific focus on how they assess the risks to a young person who does not attend an appointment.