Journalists: For links to video and audio files, see the bottom of this post.
After a decade of research and interviewing more than 6,000 U.S.families and children, Mayo Clinic researchers— in partnership with numerous national mental health advocacy organizations — this Friday are issuing new simple-to-understand guidelines to help identify youth who may have mental health disorders.
Issuing these tools is consistent with the Office of the U.S. Surgeon General call in 2001 to develop a set of easily identifiable mental health disorder action signs among youth for use by parents, professionals and community members.
Despite well-documented levels of emotional and behavioral concerns in the nation’s youth, studies have repeatedly shown that up to 75 percent of youth with mental health disorders such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, anxiety, and eating disorders are usually not identified, and youth do not receive the care they need.
After surveying more than 6,000 parents and children about mental health services in the United States during the past decade, researchers created a mental health disorder action signs tool kit to help easily identify symptoms for youth who may be experiencing mental disorders. Click here for a copy. The findings and epidemiology that led to the toolkit are published in the journal Pediatrics on Friday, Oct. 28, 2011.
Journalists: The following video and audio clips are available for download and use in your post-embargo stories.
Broll of Dr. Jensen: MOV
Below is a link to an edited youtube video with Dr. Jensen that you can embed with your stories. It will be made public when the embargo lifts.
