References
Report on a scoping review of nursing interventions for young people's psychological wellbeing
Abstract
Aim:
This paper reports on a two-part mixed methods scoping project, funded by the RCN Foundation, to review the available evidence and undertake a Delphi study of nurse-led interventions. Nurses in the field were surveyed to understand their role in promoting children and young people's mental health and emotional wellbeing across the UK.
Methods:
A scoping review of the literature was undertaken and a two-part Delphi survey was developed and managed.
Findings:
Results of the literature review were inconclusive. There was a paucity of literature, particularly in the UK, suggesting that nurses may be under-represented in the research seeking to make recommendations concerning their profession. 244 responses to the Delphi method survey were received. Responses confirmed the fundamental importance of the therapeutic relationship. They also suggested that nurse-led pre-crisis and early interventions which addressed the mental health and emotional wellbeing needs of children and young people were being extensively utilised. All countries and all regions appeared to have primarily community-based services. School-based services were perceived to be highly beneficial. Early interventions typically targeted levels of resilience, emotional regulation and the prevention of ongoing mental health problems. Respondents viewed these interventions as effective but often encountered organisational and practical challenges, including access to training and ongoing supervision.
Children's emotional wellbeing is suffering and the extent of mental health issues in the young has reached crisis levels. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increased demand for child and adolescent mental health services and generally many a young person's psychological wellbeing has been challenged in these continued difficult times. Early intervention has been recognised as a positive step towards wellbeing and needs to become more of a priority in order to prevent future generations experiencing crippling mental health disorders. The RCN Foundation recognised these challenges and commissioned a scoping review of ‘Nursing-led Interventions to support the psychological and emotional wellbeing of children and young people’ in collaboration with Sheffield Hallam University.
The National Wellbeing Survey in 2018 reported higher levels of mental ill health and loneliness in 16 to 24-year-olds than in any other age group (Jones and Randall, 2018). However, little detail is provided, and under 16-year-olds were not included. The most recent British surveys of children and young people aged 5–15 years in 1999 and 2004 carried out by the Office for National Stiatistics (the British Child and Adolescent Mental Health Surveys, or B-CAMHS) found that 10% had a clinically diagnosable mental disorder (Ford et al, 2003; Green et al, 2005). In these two surveys, the prevalence of anxiety disorders was 2–3%, depression 0.9%, conduct disorder 4.5–5%, hyperkinetic disorder (severe ADHD) 1.5%, and autism spectrum disorders 0.9%. Rarer disorders including selective mutism, eating disorders and tic disorders occurred in 0.4% of children.
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