Children's mental health emergencies-part 1: challenges in care: definition of the problem, barriers to care, screening, advocacy, and resources.

Objective: At a time when there has been a reduction in mental health resources nationwide, the incidence of mental health disorders in children has seen a dramatic increase for many reasons.

Methods: A review of the literature was done to identify the epidemiology, barriers to care, useful emergency department (ED) screening methods, and resources regarding pediatric mental health disorders in the ED.

Results: Although there are many challenges to the provision of care for children with mental health emergencies, some resources are available.