Child and Adolescent Mental Health within Primary Care: A Study of General Practitioners' Perceptions

Background:  Primary Care teams play an important role in the provision of mental health care to children and young people.
Methods:  We developed and distributed a questionnaire to all General Practitioners within one Health Authority area.
Results:  Many of the respondents rated as less than satisfactory their competence and their knowledge and skills in important areas of child and adolescent mental health practice. A significant minority expressed a high level of interest in child and adolescent mental health and most respondents reported that they would value further training.
Conclusions:  General Practitioners should be provided with more training and support in their role as providers of child and adolescent mental health care.