RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Missed opportunities: mental disorder in children of parents with depression
JF British Journal of General Practice
JO Br J Gen Pract
FD British Journal of General Practice
SP e487
OP e493
DO 10.3399/bjgp12X652355
VO 62
IS 600
A1 Robert Potter
A1 Becky Mars
A1 Olga Eyre
A1 Sophie Legge
A1 Tamsin Ford
A1 Ruth Sellers
A1 Nicholas Craddock
A1 Frances Rice
A1 Stephan Collishaw
A1 Anita Thapar
A1 Ajay K Thapar
YR 2012
UL http://bjgp.org/content/62/600/e487.abstract
AB Background Emerging evidence suggests that early intervention and prevention programmes for mental health problems in the offspring of parents with depression are important. Such programmes are difficult to implement if children with psychiatric disorder are not identified and are not accessing services, even if their parents are known to primary care.Aim To investigate service use in children of parents who have recurrent depression, and factors that influence such contact.Design and setting A total of 333 families were recruited, mainly through primary health care, in which at least one parent had received treatment for recurrent depression and had a child aged 9–17 years.Method Psychiatric assessments of parents and children were completed using research diagnostic interviews. The service-use interview recorded current (in the 3 months prior to interview) and lifetime contact with health, educational, and social services due to concerns about the child’s emotions or behaviour.Results Only 37% of children who met criteria for psychiatric disorder were in contact with any service at the time of interview. A third, who were suicidal or self-harming and had a psychiatric disorder at that time, were not in contact with any service. Lack of parental worry predicted lower service use, with higher rates in children with comorbidity and suicidality.Conclusion Most children with a psychiatric disorder in this high-risk sample were not in contact with services. Improving ease of access to services, increasing parental and professional awareness that mental health problems can cluster in families, and improving links between adult and child services may help early detection and intervention strategies for the offspring of parents with depression.