This annual report - Taranaki District Health Board

Midland Region DistributionChildren and Young People Accessing Mental Health Services byDiagnosisIn addition to the diagnoses reviewed in the section on access to mental health servicesfor children, a number of mental health diagnoses became increasingly common duringlate childhood and early adolescence. In the Midland Region during 2009–2011, theseincluded anxiety disorders, stress reaction/adjustment disorders and eating disorders.In the Waikato, Lakes DHB, Tairawhiti and Taranaki during 2009–2011, the number ofchildren and young people accessing mental health services with anxiety disorders, stressreaction/adjustment disorders and eating disorders was significantly lower than the NewZealand rate. In the Bay of Plenty, while the number accessing mental health services withanxiety disorders and stress reaction/adjustment disorders was significantly higher thanthe New Zealand rate, the number accessing services with eating disorders was similar tothe New Zealand rate (Table 99).In interpreting these differences, it must be remembered that these figures reflect accessto services rather than the underlying prevalence of these conditions in the community.Further regional differences in the proportion of cases managed by paediatric outpatientservices (which are not captured in PRIMHD) vs. child and youth mental health servicesmay account for some of the differences seen.Local Policy Documents and Evidence-Based ReviewsRelevant to Mental Health Issues in Children and YoungPeopleLocal policy documents and evidence-based reviews relevant to the management ofmental health issues in children and young people are reviewed in the Access to MentalHealth Services: Introduction section commencing on Page 351. In addition, Table 112on Page 414 provides an overview of the literature on the prevention of drug use in youngpeople, while Table 116 on Page 423 considers suicide prevention in young people.Finally, the In-Depth Topic Mental Health Issues in Children commencing on Page 368provides a more detailed review of the literature as it relates to children aged 0–14 years.Access to Mental Health Services in Children and Young People - 394