Association For Child And Adolescent Mental Health (acamh)

In this episode of Mind The Kids, host Mark Tebbs welcomes Professor Kapil Sayal from the University of Nottingham, to explore the landmark STADIA trial, which was published in ACAMH’s Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry (JCPP) https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.14090.  Together, they unravel how standardized diagnostic assessments, like the DAWBA, might shape the journey for children and young people referred to CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services). Kapil shares his dual perspective as both a professor and an NHS consultant, explaining how the STADIA trial spanned eight NHS sites across England and deeply involved young people and parents with lived experience. The heart of their conversation is the real-world impact of using structured assessment tools in mental health referrals—do they improve diagnosis, access, or outcomes? Listeners will learn how tools like DAWBA could transform clinical decision-making, listen to find what the study found. Families appreciated the validation and feed