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This week, President Obama held a National Conference on Mental Health, calling for a more open dialogue on mental illness in order to prevent tragedies that can occur when mental illness goes untreated. Although mental illness can affect anyone, the president pointed out that young people and veterans are in particular need of attention.

To better understand this important issue, the National Poll on Children’s Health has taken a look at concerns regarding mental health care for children across the country.

In a 2008 NPCH Report, parents were asked about mental health concerns for their children and where their children received care for mental illness. In this Poll, more than half of parents reported their children’s primary care doctor had never asked if they have concerns about their children’s mental health. Among parents whose children had been diagnosed with a mental health condition, 25% had experienced a time when they could not get the specialty mental health services they wanted. Read the full report - Mental health services for children and adolescents: Missed opportunities in primary care & barriers to specialty care.

Another NPCH Report in 2010 covered the issue of mental health services for children at schools. Parents were asked to grade their children’s schools based on the level of support they offer for kids with behavioral, emotional, or family problems. Only 37% of parents gave their children’s primary schools an “A” for providing support for children with ADHD and other behavioral problems and just 34% gave an “A” for supporting children with emotional of family problems. Support was worse at the secondary school level, with only 22% of parents grading their children’s schools with an “A” for supporting kids with behavioral, emotional, or family problems. Read the full report - School support lacking for emotional, behavioral issues, say parents.

More recently, a study from the National Voices Project – a companion survey also conducted by the NPCH team – found that many adults who work or volunteer with youth believe children and teens do not have appropriate access to mental health services. The availability of mental health services was perceived to be low even in communities where adults said there was lots of availability of primary care and hospital care. Read more: Access to mental health care lacking for children, teens across the U.S.

Mental health care is a serious concern across the U.S. and this week’s National Conference on Mental Health has brought the conversation on mental health care into the spotlight again. What are your concerns about mental health care in the U.S.? Have you experienced barriers to getting appropriate care for your children? Share your experiences in our comments section.