Identifying needs and challenges in transitional mental health care: A scoping review on the perspectives of health and social care professionals.

The transition from Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) to Adult Mental Health Services (AMHS) is often associated with disrupted continuity of care, where young people may experience a loss of support during transfer. This scoping review identifies the needs and challenges experienced by health and social care professionals navigating this boundary, a perspective often overlooked in transition research. A systematic search of major databases identified literature published between 2014 and 2025. Following Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) methodology, 25 peer-reviewed publications were included after screening 4,040 records. Data were charted using a standardised extraction form and synthesised thematically within a socio-ecological framework across individual, interpersonal, service, and societal levels. Findings indicate multilevel barriers affecting transitions from CAMHS to AMHS. At the individual level, professionals often lack developmentally informed knowledge and disorder-specific expertise, alongside training to support autonomy as an ongoing process. Interpersonally, differences in care cultures -family-oriented in CAMHS versus more individualised in AMHS- complicate continuity, compounded by the absence of bridging roles and insufficient family involvement. At the service level, fragmentation is reinforced by inconsistent implementation of protocols, unclear responsibilities, and restrictive eligibility criteria, often resulting in a loss of continuity of care. At the societal level, rigid age boundaries and structural underfunding of coordination further perpetuate discontinuity. Despite well-documented challenges, progress in implementing sustainable solutions remains limited. Advancing transition care requires a shift towards action-oriented, multilevel implementation research. Integrated models, such as multidisciplinary youth mental health teams, are essential to ensure developmentally appropriate continuity of care.