Nurses Warn of Rising Child Mental Health ER Visits and Tripled Wait Times

Nurses at the Royal College of Nursing Congress highlighted a systemic shortage of specialist adolescent mental health units, forcing children to wait in emergency departments that are ill‑suited for psychiatric care. They stressed that early intervention could avert crisis points and reduce long‑term suffering, noting that nearly three‑quarters of mental health disorders emerge before age 18.

An observational analysis of Freedom of Information requests from acute trusts in England found roughly 500,000 under‑18s presented to A&E for mental health reasons since 2019. The same analysis showed that waits exceeding 12 hours for these cases have more than tripled compared with earlier periods. Separate data indicate that local council allocations for pothole repairs are five to six times higher than funding for child and adolescent mental health services.

The rise in emergency visits correlates with longer waits, but the data do not prove that increased visits cause longer waits; both may stem from under‑investment in community‑based care. Nurses argue that shifting funds toward prevention and early support could reduce costly crisis interventions and improve outcomes. Practical steps include expanding school‑based mental health programs, increasing crisis‑response teams, and directing more municipal budgets toward CAMHS.