ArticleBMC health services research2023
What barriers could impede access to mental health services for children and adolescents in Africa? A scoping review.
Article in BMC health services research, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 25 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
25 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 27 citations in OpenAlex.
- Post-traumatic stress disorder among children and adolescents affected by armed conflict in East Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMJ paediatrics open · 2026Pooled it
- Association of hearing loss with cognitive function and mental health in Africa: A systematic review.BMC public health · 2025Pooled it
- Untreated Psychosis and Healthcare-Seeking Behaviour in Pakistan: A Qualitative Study With Young People, Carers, Traditional Healers, and Healthcare Professionals.Early intervention in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Mental health and educational support strategies for students with learning disabilities in Sub-Saharan Africa.Annals of medicine and surgery (2012) · 2026Article
- Psychological Issues, Prevalence and Predictors in Senegal: Evidence from the Senegal Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) 2023.Indian journal of psychological medicine · 2026Article
- Mental health, coping strategies and help-seeking behaviours among women petty traders in Nsukka, Enugu State, Nigeria: a cross-sectional survey.BMC women's health · 2026Article
- Unignorable burden of mental health disorders among adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa: a call for urgent action.BMJ global health · 2026Article
- A scoping review of outcomes and implementation challenges of mental health care interventions among conflict-affected populations in Africa.Discover mental health · 2026Review
- School-Based Universal Mental Health Prevention Programs for Children Aged 6 to 9 Years in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Protocol for a Scoping Review.JMIR research protocols · 2026Article
- Evaluating the technical efficiency of primary health facilities in delivering adolescent mental, sexual and reproductive health services in Burkina Faso.BMC primary care · 2026Article
- Evaluating a Culturally Tailored Digital Storytelling Intervention to Improve Trauma Awareness in Conflict-Affected Eastern Congo: Quasi-Experimental Pilot Study.JMIR mental health · 2026Article
- From stigma to support: Assessing the impact of school mental health literacy program in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
- Barriers and facilitators of mental health help-seeking behaviours among school-going adolescents in Sub-Saharan Africa: A qualitative evidence synthesis.Global mental health (Cambridge, England) · 2026Review
- The referral trajectories for young people with depression in low-resource settings: A qualitative study from Ghana and Zimbabwe.PloS one · 2026Article
- Amplifying Coaches' voices from the implementation of the MindSKILLZ youth mental health program in Kenya: A critical discourse analysis.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
- Using Generative AI to Co-Design Digital Mental Health Interventions With Adolescents in Rural South Africa: Qualitative Thematic Analysis of Participatory Workshops.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- Trends and future burden of schizophrenia in youth across G20 countries: a systematic analysis of the global burden of disease 2021 study.BMC psychiatry · 2025Article
- Mental health and substance use problems among adolescents in Lesotho: Prevalence, access to care, and association with lifestyle factors.Journal of research on adolescence : the official journal of the Society for Research on Adolescence · 2025Article
- Article
- Mental health service use among adolescents in three low- and middle-income countries: An analysis of the National Adolescent Mental Health Surveys.Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundFew studies have examined the mental health needs of African children and teenagers. Based on this gap, this scoping review aims to identify barriers to mental health services, treatments and services sought, and where mental health services are received.
methodsTo pursue the stated objectives, we searched the following databases a) PsycINFO, b) CINAHL, c) Medline, and d) Web of Science. The search yielded 15,956 records in total.
resultsStudies included in this review were conducted in six African countries: Ethiopia, Mali, Egypt, South Africa, Nigeria, and Tunisia. The majority of the studies were conducted in South Africa (33.32%), followed by Ethiopia (25%), and Egypt (16.67%). In terms of treatments and services sought, both professional and traditional/alternative treatments were reported. The most frequently noted services were psychiatric treatments (25%), screening and diagnostic assessment (16.67%), as well as psychiatric and psychological consultations (16.67%). The most frequently reported treatment centers were psychiatric hospitals. As for treatment barriers, the three most frequently encountered barriers were: a preference for traditional/alternative and complementary treatments (33.33%), followed by stigma (25%), and a lack of knowledge/unfamiliarity with the mental health condition (25%).
conclusionThe results of this study are alarming due to the significant barriers to accessing mental health services coupled with the use of potentially harmful interventions to treat those mental health conditions. We hope this scoping review will help shed light on this important issue and help tomorrow's generation reach its full potential.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.