Among Children Served By Military Health Services, Mental Health Diagnosis Rose From 9% In 2003 To 15.5% In 2015

Psychiatric diagnoses among children who were military dependents increased from 9.2% in 2003 to 15.5% in 2015. Psychiatric medications for all included children increased 46% from 7.1% in 2003 to 10.4% in 2015. Larger increases were seen among older children. For children diagnosed with mental health conditions, the mean number of mental health care visits per year increased 27% from 6.3 in 2003 to 8.0 in 2015. In the study population of nearly 2 million children a year, the researchers found that the percentage of all children prescribed psychiatric medications rose from 7% to . . .