More than 300,000 California children between the ages 4 and 11 need mental health care, but only one in four is treated, according to a new policy brief from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research — this, despite the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommending early-childhood intervention as a critical step in reducing the severity of mental health problems in adulthood.
“Without early assessment, you miss warning signs, as well as opportunities to intervene,” said D. Imelda Padilla-Frausto, a researcher at the center and lead author of the study. “Waiting can lead to more serious problems later.”
[For more of this story, written by Venetia Lai, go to http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/three-of-four-california-children-with-mental-health-needs-don-t-get-treatment]
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