Risk group, mental disorders, prevention, health promotion, care services, development of children and adolescents

National Centre for Early Intervention, NZFH

Augsburg District Hospital, Clinic for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics

Until 02.01.2018

Children of mentally ill parents are often chronically and multiply burdened with high risks for their mental health. Risks lie in the accumulation and interaction of limited parental relationship and parenting skills, psychosocial and genetic stress. Children of mentally ill parents are a recognised high-risk group. In contrast, they often receive insufficient and/or inadequate professional support and care. Possible reasons for this include a lack of (age-) appropriate and specific help and services, as well as a lack of interdisciplinary cooperation and networking structures or structures that are not very binding. Structural (interface) problems between social systems make it more difficult to provide the necessary interdisciplinary support and care. Various projects and initiatives are analysing both professional and structural/financial gaps and deficits and developing recommendations and interdisciplinary models for the optimisation of support and care for children of mentally ill parents.

A systematic national and international literature and database research will be carried out to expand the previously small database on the care situation of children of mentally ill parents. This provides a basis for the planning and implementation of empirically tested prevention and intervention approaches (funded by the Federal Centre for Health Education). Furthermore, the burdens and interdisciplinary support and care needs of children of mentally ill parents receiving inpatient care are being surveyed at two clinics over a period of six months (Ingrid & Frank Foundation). Examples of specialist policy initiatives include specialist days (Ingrid & Frank Foundation, NZFH), expert workshops or the organisation of a parliamentary evening (in cooperation with the NZFH) as well as the creation of a key issues paper on interdisciplinary support and care for infants and young children of parents with mental illness in the context of early help.

• Kölch, M., Ziegenhain, U. & Fegert, J. (2014). Kinder psychisch kranker Eltern - Herausforderungen für eine interdisziplinäre Kooperation in Betreuung und Versorgung. Weinheim: Beltz Juventa.
• Kölch, M. & Ziegenhain, U. (2015). Better care for children of mentally ill parents - early help, family psychiatry and psychotherapy as an interdisciplinary task. Neurology, 34(01/02), 49-54.
• Pillhofer, M., Ziegenhain, U., Fegert, J.M. Hoffmann, T. & Paul, M. (2016). Children of parents with mental illness in the context of early help. Key issues paper. Cologne: National Centre for Early Intervention.

Mail: forschungshaus.kjp@uniklinik-ulm.de

Ingrid and Frank Foundation

National Centre for Early Help

Federal Centre for Health Education