Open access

Implementing a Clinical Pathway for Paediatric Mental Health Care in the Emergency Department

Publication: Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health
28 February 2020

Abstract

Practitioners in emergency departments across Canada are challenged with providing quality mental health (MH) care for children and youth despite increased demand for services. Coordinated service strategies, such as clinical pathways, are needed to effectively manage paediatric MH disorders. Practitioners in a children’s hospital emergency department implemented a pathway to improve the care of children and youth with MH conditions. This paper describes an external evaluation of practitioner and stakeholder experiences of the initiative as well as the implementation process, then explores current state and lessons learned. The paper provides a unique contribution to the practitioner-led implementation literature.

Resumen

Les praticiens des services d’urgence à travers le Canada doivent relever le défi de fournir des soins de santé mentale (SM) de qualité aux enfants et aux jeunes, et ce, malgré la hausse de la demande pour ces services. La mise en oeuvre de stratégies de services coordonnés, tels des parcours cliniques, est nécessaire pour gérer efficacement les problèmes de SM chez les enfants. Les praticiens d’un service d’urgence d’un hôpital pour enfants ont mis sur pied un parcours clinique pour améliorer les soins rendus aux enfants et aux jeunes souffrant de problèmes de SM. Le présent article présente une évaluation externe des expériences des praticiens et des parties prenantes de l’initiative ainsi que le processus de sa mise en oeuvre, puis brosse un tableau de la situation actuelle et des enseignements tirés à ce jour. L’article apporte une contribution unique à la littérature portant sur la mise en place d’initiatives dirigées par des praticiens.

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Information & Authors

Information

Published In

cover image Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health
Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health
Volume 38Number 4December 2019
Pages: 1 - 18

History

Version of record online: 28 February 2020

Key Words

  1. emergency service
  2. mental health
  3. paediatric
  4. care pathway
  5. implementation

Mots-clés

  1. services d’urgence
  2. santé mentale
  3. pédiatrie
  4. parcours de soins
  5. mise en oeuvre

Authors

Affiliations

Erin M. McCabe
Teresa Katherine Lightbody
Alberta Health Services
Christine Mummery
Alberta Health Services
Angela Coloumbe
Alberta Health Services
Kathy GermAnn
Lacombe County, Alberta
Beverly Lent
Alberta Health Services
Laurene Black
Alberta Health Services
Kathryn E. R. Graham
Douglas P. Gross [email protected]
Maxi Miciak
Alberta Innovates, University of Alberta

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