Mental health of young people: a global public-health challenge.
Mental disorders account for a large proportion of the disease burden in young people in all societies. Most mental disorders begin during youth (12-24 years of age), although they are often first detected later in life. Poor mental health is strongly related to other health and development concerns in young people, notably lower educational achievements, substance abuse, violence, and poor reproductive and sexual health. The effectiveness of some interventions for some mental disorders in this age-group have been established, although more research is urgently needed to improve the range of affordable and feasible interventions, since most mental-health needs in young people are unmet, even in high-income countries. Key challenges to addressing mental-health needs include the shortage of mental-health professionals, the fairly low capacity and motivation of non-specialist health workers to provide quality mental-health services to young people, and the stigma associated with mental disorder. We propose a population-based, youth focused model, explicitly integrating mental health with other youth health and welfare expertise. Addressing young people's mental-health needs is crucial if they are to fulfil their potential and contribute fully to the development of their communities.
Patel
Vikram
V
Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK; Sangath Centre, 841/1 Alto Porvorim, Goa 403521, India. Electronic address: vikram.patel@lshtm.ac.uk.
Flisher
Alan J
AJ
Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Adolescent Health Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital, Rondebosch, South Africa; Research Centre for Health Promotion, University of Bergen, Norway.
Hetrick
Sarah
S
ORYGEN Research Centre, Parkville, VIC, Australia.
McGorry
Patrick
P
ORYGEN Research Centre, Parkville, VIC, Australia; Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D014943:Global Health; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D011610:Psychosocial Deprivation; D012307:Risk Factors; D013405:Suicide / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*