Implementing guidance and guidelines for developing and delivering equitable child and adolescent mental health services

Richard Williams, Philip Hazell

Research output: Contribution to journalEditorialpeer-review

Abstract

Introduction
Past editorial reviews [1–3] have endeavoured to put the research findings reported in this section of the journal into policy, service delivery and professional contexts. In
this review, we are concerned about the equity of child and adolescent mental health services (i.e. their capacity to meet effectively, fairly and acceptably the assessed
needs of children and young people in any specified population). We focus on the roles of guidance in promoting equality of access to ethical, values-based and evidence-informed mental healthcare. If research is to influence clinical practice, then it is
necessary to have mechanisms for rigorously testing emerging evidence and applying it progressively to: practice; service delivery policies, protocols and algorithms;
implementing well informed policies for training the professions; and financing suitable services. Evidence does not and should not stand alone [4]. One of us (R.W.) has made the case for using knowledge of research and of communities’ and patients’ values to plan and deliver services that are, at the same time, evidence-based and acceptable to consumers. [5]. This is an arena that is both complicated and complex [6]. In this review, we return to these themes and focus on clinical guidelines. We determine what they are and identify the general barriers to implementing them, and direct attention to research on implementing guidelines in child and adolescent mental healthcare.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)339-344
JournalCurrent Opinion in Psychiatry
Volume22
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jul 2009

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