Future Directions in Inpatient Mental Health Care for Children and Adolescents

Inpatient mental health care for children and adolescents has been available since the 1900s and since that time several factors (e.g., financial, societal, political, and medical) have influenced and guided the structural format of facilities, treatment models, access, admission criteria, and length of stay. In general, there has been minimal consistency across time and settings in terms of milieu organization, treatment team structure, assessment and intervention approach, and access. One might say if you have seen one inpatient psychiatric unit, you have seen one inpatient psychiatric unit. In addition, there is limited application of evidence-based assessment and treatment. Further, despite the length of time inpatient mental health care has been offered, little is known about the benefits or drawbacks of the intervention due to limitations in research.