Youth need age-appropriate care

A newly-released report suggests too many young people experiencing acute mental distress in Aotearoa are being admitted to adult inpatient mental health services.

° e Te Hiringa Mahara - the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission report ‘Te Huringa Tuarua 2023: Youth services focus reportAdmission of young people to adult inpatient mental health services’, launched Wednesday.

“In the last year alone, 159 young people aged 12-17 years were admitted to adult mental health inpatient services – this is one-quarter of young people who were admitted for inpatient mental health care,” says Te Hiringa Mahara Board chair Hayden Wano.

“° is is unacceptable. It needs to be zero. Adult and youth mental health inpatient services are fundamentally di˜ erent, and young people experiencing distress should not have to choose services that are not ageappropriate because there is no better alternative close to their wh˙nau and home.” Read the report: https://www. mhwc.govt.nz/our-work/our-reports/