Experiences of general practitioners in supporting the mental health of children and young people: An exploratory qualitative study in the United Kingdom

Mental health (MH) problems in children and young people (CYP) are on the rise, negatively affecting their quality of life. General Practitioners (GPs) are the first port of call for any health-related issue; however, it has not been fully explored what kind of training, tools or management strategies they use for CYP’s MH. The study’s aim was to explore and report experiences, challenges and strategies that GPs in the UK have to address the MH needs of CYP. Ten semi-structured interviews were conducted with GPs. Qualitative content analysis was used resulting in two themes and five subthemes. Most GPs reported receiving experiential training to address MH issues on CYP and explained some of the most common presentations and whether these are primary or secondary causes for consultation. In the second theme ‘Management Approaches’, GPs draw on different barriers to communicating with CYP and their families or other relevant parties (school for instance), but they also discuss treatment approaches including pharmaceutical. Participants shared myriad tools, resources and strategies they have used to address CYP’s MH. Although GPs provided valuable insights on this topic, the study shows an urgent need for providing systematic training and management strategies to respond to MH problems appropriately.