Building Mental Health Care for Autistic People: What Works? Mental Health Question Time

In a cross-disciplinary Mental Health Question Time event, an expert panel presented a vision for mental health care for autistic individuals.

The public's understanding of neurodiversity has improved significantly in recent years, with more positive stories and role models appearing in the mainstream media. However, there is currently a mental health crisis in the autism community. Autistic individuals have a high probability of developing mental health problems, but they have a low probability of receiving effective help. 
Limitations to mental health care for autistic individuals include a lack of resources, which results in inadequate services or a lack of services altogether; barriers to accessing relevant services due to them not being accommodating to autistic patients; and the absence of an appropriate evidence base to guide prevention and treatment.

Researchers from the Division of Psychiatry led a public engagement event with the Mental Elf blogger, Lancet Psychiatry, the Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, and the NIHR Policy Research Unit in Mental Health to improve care for autistic individuals experiencing mental health problems.

In a cross-disciplinary Mental Health Question Time event, an expert panel consisting of individuals with lived experience, clinicians, practitioners, researchers, and policymakers presented a vision for mental health care for autistic individuals. The panel discussed various themes, including prevention, implementation, and new evidence.

The researchers were also able to discuss the latest findings of the NIHR Policy Research Unit in Mental Health review. The discussions would help inform the research programme going forward.