A Health Foundation sponsored project that provides training to help school nurses spot signs of mental illness in young people has been featured in The Nursing Standard.
The Quest project is led by the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s college London and mental health charity Rethink. It is funded by a £416, 000 grant from The Health Foundation’s Engaging with Quality in Primary Care initiative.
The in-depth feature highlights the fact that many emotional disorders and mental health problems start in adolescence - around half of people in their mid-twenties with mental health problems meet the criteria for their disorders in their mid-teens.
However, due to the isolated and scattered nature of school nurses early detection is extremely difficult.
The reluctance of young people to go to see their GP once problems come to light means they often do not receive the treatment they need.
In response, the three year project is developing training and materials to help school nurses recognise and assess mental health problems and know when to refer young people for help.
For more information please see: www.nursing-standard.co.uk