A short report on the prevalence of mental health disturbance in children and young people: Interpretations and implications for the mental health care of adolescent women

In this short report, some recent statistics of mental disorder prevalence in young people are presented and discussed from a gender perspective. It is suggested that girls with mental health problems might experience difficulty in having their needs met within services which may still embody significant elements of paternalism and where psychodynamic phenomena may impact on care delivery. Findings may have implications for practitioners involved in child and adolescent mental health care.