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Transition from children and adolescent to adult mental health services for young people with intellectual disabilities: a scoping study of service organisation problems
- Author:
- KAEHNE Axel
- Journal article citation:
- Advances in Mental Health and Intellectual Disabilities, 5(1), January 2011, pp.9-16.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
The author first highlights the lack of research to date on the transition of young people with intellectual disabilities from children and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) to adult mental health services (AMHS). He then reports a study which examined the views of mental health professionals on partnership work and service gaps in transition for young people with intellectual disabilities, as part of a broader study on partnership work and the effectiveness of multi-agency protocols. Eight professionals from three local authorities in Wales were interviewed, four of whom worked in CAMHS and three in AMHS. Mental health services for people with intellectual disabilities were non-specialist in all three local authorities and not integrated into the health or social care team. The result was a potential triple rift in service linkage: between CAMHS and AMHS, between mental health services and secondary and primary health services in the children and adult sector, and between mental health services and local social care provision. Analysis revealed three main over arching themes in relation to transition and transition partnerships for mental health professionals: coordination of services; concerns about existing service gaps; and differences in service models and service approaches between CAMHS and AMHS. These are discussed. The author concludes that the insufficient integration of mental health services in transition planning may contribute to disruptive transitions for young people with intellectual disabilities and their carers. Further research should examine how best to involve mental health services in transition partnerships for young people.
Transition partnerships and protocols – do they help planning transition for young people?
- Authors:
- KAEHNE Axel, O’CONNELL Mary Clare
- Journal article citation:
- Llais, 95, Spring 2010, pp.13-16.
- Publisher:
- Learning Disability Wales
Policy in England and Wales has identified transition as a major challenge for social and health services and good collaboration between services is seen as key to adequately supporting young people with learning disabilities at this difficult time in their lives. All learning disabilities services in Wales have been asked to develop robust partnerships between all relevant agencies and parents of young people to create good planning routes and planning practices during transition. Results of an ongoing study being conducted by the Welsh Centre for Learning Disabilities at Cardiff University, to examine all transition protocols that have been written in local authorities in Wales are reported. Twenty one of the 22 local authorities in Wales were found to have transition protocols in place, however a huge variation in the nature and content of these protocols was found. Encouraging findings were that the majority of protocols said something meaningful about the need to involve carers and young people in the planning process and most protocols outlined individual tasks and duties of professionals. However most transition protocols showed lack of involvement of young people and carers as equal partners in the planning process, failed to include external non-statutory agencies in the transition planning process, and showed an absence of robust consent and data sharing arrangements. The study continues to investigate the protocols in 5 local authorities in more detail.