Child and Adolescent Mental Health: Knowledge, Practice, and Services in Central Europe

Abstract This article describes the history and current situation of child and adolescent mental health in three Central European countries. As demonstrated by the comparative table at the end (Table 12.7), which also includes Austria and Slovakia, the countries are different in terms of their total population, number of institutions, and number of child and adolescent psychiatrists. However, the types of services (outpatient, inpatient, day patient, and specialized services for some disorders) are similar. Switzerland is the most advanced country and historically was also the leader regarding child and adolescent mental health in Europe. In all three countries, child and adolescent psychiatry has become an independent medical discipline separate from psychiatry and pediatrics, with a specific training curriculum and a board examination at the end of training. Despite remarkable progress in all three countries, there are also shortcomings. These involve the unequal distribution of services, a deficit in outpatient and day patient units, and an insufficient number of specialists per population. This applies to the Czech Republic and Germany, not to Switzerland. Finally, there are also deficits regarding research, which is more pronounced in the Czech Republic and Switzerland compared with Germany.