'Accumulating harm and waiting for crisis': Parents' perspectives of accessing Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services for their autistic child experiencing mental health difficulties.
Emma Ashworth, Lucy Bray, Claire Hanlon and 6 others
PMID 40304085WHAT IT FOUND
Parents described autistic children accumulating trauma and worsening mental health while waiting for CAMHS.
Almost half of those who sought help were rejected for assessment, and only 9% felt their child improved after contact with CAMHS.
Key findings
01Parents reported that autistic children accumulated trauma and experienced worsening mental health along the care pathway while waiting for crisis.
02Almost half of those who sought help (46%) were rejected for a CAMHS assessment, and only 9% felt their child's mental health improved as a result of interaction with CAMHS.
0370.5% of parents who disclosed their child's autism diagnosis said no reasonable adjustments were made, and 53.6% reported their child did not feel at all comfortable explaining mental health difficulties.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
Parents chose to take part, so the sample may not represent all parents of autistic children. Parents who were already engaged with services or online groups were more likely to be reached. Parents with positive experiences may not have felt the need to participate. The survey was online, so families without necessary technology, including more isolated families, may have been missed. Only parent or carer views were collected, not the children's own views. Data were collected shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have influenced reported waiting times. Percentages are based on the number of responses to each question, not all 300 participants. The study describes experiences and barriers, not tested effects of any therapy.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest and received no financial support for the research, authorship, or publication.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the 46% rejection and 9% improvement figures as a controlled test of CAMHS effectiveness. They are parents' self-reported experiences from a self-selected online survey, so they describe access and perceived impact, not measured clinical outcomes.