Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Editorial
. 2023 Sep;82(3):e97-e105.
doi: 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2023.06.003.

The Management of Children and Youth With Pediatric Mental and Behavioral Health Emergencies

Mohsen Saidinejad, Susan Duffy, Dina Wallin, Jennifer A Hoffmann, Madeline Joseph, Jennifer Schieferle Uhlenbrock, Kathleen Brown, Muhammad Waseem, Sally K Snow, Madeline Andrew, Alice A Kuo, Carmen Sulton, Thomas Chun, Lois K Lee; AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS; Committee on Pediatric Emergency Medicine; Gregory P Conners, James Callahan, Toni Gross, Madeline Joseph, Lois Lee, Elizabeth Mack, Jennifer Marin, Suzan Mazor, Ronald Paul, Nathan Timm; AMERICAN COLLEGE OF EMERGENCY PHYSICIANS; Pediatric Emergency Medicine Committee; Ann M Dietrich, Kiyetta H Alade, Christopher S Amato, Zaza Atanelov, Marc Auerbach, Isabel A Barata, Lee S Benjamin, Kathleen T Berg, Kathleen Brown, Cindy Chang, Jessica Chow, Corrie E Chumpitazi, Ilene A Claudius, Joshua Easter, Ashley Foster, Sean M Fox, Marianne Gausche-Hill, Michael J Gerardi, Jeffrey M Goodloe, Melanie Heniff, James Jim L Homme, Paul T Ishimine, Susan D John, Madeline M Joseph, Samuel Hiu-Fung Lam, Simone L Lawson, Moon O Lee, Joyce Li, Sophia D Lin, Dyllon Ivy Martini, Larry Bruce Mellick, Donna Mendez, Emory M Petrack, Lauren Rice, Emily A Rose, Timothy Ruttan, Mohsen Saidinejad, Genevieve Santillanes, Joelle N Simpson, Shyam M Sivasankar, Daniel Slubowski, Annalise Sorrentino, Michael J Stoner, Carmen D Sulton, Jonathan H Valente, Samreen Vora, Jessica J Wall, Dina Wallin, Theresa A Walls, Muhammad Waseem, Dale P Woolridge; EMERGENCY NURSES ASSOCIATION; Pediatric Committee; Cam Brandt, Krisi M Kult, Justin J Milici, Nicholas A Nelson, Michele A Redlo, Maureen R Curtis Cooper, Michele Redlo, Krisi Kult, Katherine Logee, Dixie Elizabeth Bryant, Maureen Curtis Cooper, Kristen Cline; POLICY STATEMENT; Organizational Principles to Guide and Define the Child Health Care System and/or Improve the Health of All Children; This article is being jointly published in Pediatrics, Annals of Emergency Medicine, and Journal of Emergency Nursing.
Editorial

The Management of Children and Youth With Pediatric Mental and Behavioral Health Emergencies

Mohsen Saidinejad et al. Ann Emerg Med. 2023 Sep.

Abstract

Mental and behavioral health (MBH) emergencies in children and youth continue to increasingly affect not only the emergency department (ED), but the entire spectrum of emergency medical services for children, from prehospital services to the community. Inadequate community and institutional infrastructure to care for children and youth with MBH conditions makes the ED an essential part of the health care safety net for these patients. As a result, an increasing number of children and youth are referred to the ED for evaluation of a broad spectrum of MBH emergencies, from depression and suicidality to disruptive and aggressive behavior. However, challenges in providing optimal care to these patients include lack of personnel, capacity, and infrastructure, challenges with timely access to a mental health professional, the nature of a busy ED environment, and paucity of outpatient post-ED discharge resources. These factors contribute to prolonged ED stays and boarding, which negatively affects patient care and ED operations. Strategies to improve care for MBH emergencies, including systems level coordination of care, is therefore essential. The goal of this policy statement and its companion technical report is to highlight strategies, resources, and recommendations for improving emergency care delivery for pediatric MBH.

Keywords: behavioral health; emergency department; emergency medical services for children; medical home; mental health; primary care provider; school and community mental health services; telepsychiatry; whole person care.

PubMed Disclaimer

Publication types