Improving quality of mental health care for children, adolescents and young people

WHO is working with countries and partners to improve the mental health and well-being of children, adolescents and young people – defined as people under the age of 30 – in the WHO European Region.

Suicide is the fourth leading cause of death in 15–19-year-olds and 75% of all mental health conditions are established by the age of age 24 in the Region. Despite this, the majority of children, adolescents and young people requiring care will not receive the support they need.

Mental health care support is most effective when it is received early. Not being able to access good quality mental health care in a timely manner can have ongoing negative impacts for the person, their family members and the wider community throughout their lives.  

In recognition of this, the WHO Office on Quality of Care and Patient Safety in Athens (Greece), in collaboration with the WHO Mental Health Flagship team and Government of the Hellenic Republic in Greece, have set up a programme specifically dedicated to improving quality of care for children, adolescents and young people.

Working with stakeholders from across the Region and the Pan-European Mental Health Coalition, the programme aims to improve quality of care through the following activities:

• increase participation of children, adolescents and young people in all aspects of mental health service provision for this age group;
• provide a platform for Member States to jointly solve problems and share good practices;
• co-create and pilot a tool to support Member States in assessing quality of care for children and adolescent mental health;
• trial innovative solutions to overcome barriers to providing quality care; and
• strengthen mental health data for children, adolescents and young people.