What are general practitioners’ views on the management of adolescents with mental health disorders? A qualitative study

ABSTRACT

One in 10 children aged 11 to 16 years’ have a mental health disorder. Whilst general practitioners (GPs) are considered ideal candidates to intervene and provide support, little research has focused on how this is managed, and the challenges they face, in the U.K. The aim of this work was to explore GPs’ views on the management of adolescents with mental health disorders, and identify challenges they may face in current care. Eight GPs working in London were interviewed, using a semi-structured topic guide and a pre-prepared structured vignette. GPs with more clinical experience felt greater confidence in offering an intuitive approach to care. Many emphasised the therapeutic value of partnership with adolescents and discussed the complexity of identifying and labelling adolescents with a mental health disorder. Most GPs highlighted the need for a social picture: assessing their level of socio-economic deprivation, and the impact of parents. However, through this focus, some GPs felt adolescents from middle class backgrounds could be overlooked. This study offers some insight into the considerable impact GPs have on adolescents with mental health disorders, and challenges they face. To meet these challenges, proposals include a named contact within secondary care, and improved resources.

KEYWORDS:

• Adolescent
• mental health
• GP
• management
• challenges

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Ethical approval

Approval for the study was confirmed by the NHS London Surrey Borders Research Ethics Committee (reference number: 18/LO/0278), and NHS Health Research Authority (IRAS project ID: 240866) on 16 February 2018, and 7 March 2018, respectively. A minor amendment to include the borough of Camden as a research site was confirmed on 14 March 2018.