By Lo Kuo-chia and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writer

A new committee established yesterday aims to promote legal reforms, provide cross-ministry liaisons and improve early preventive measures to create a well-rounded youth mental health safety net.

The Children and Adolescent Mental Health Committee established under the Legislative Yuan’s Health, Welfare and Environment Caucus is to be chaired by National Taiwan University deputy dean Gau Shur-fen (高淑芬).

Citing national surveys, Gau said that the lifetime prevalence for psychiatric disorders among children and adolescents stands at 31.6 percent, while the figures for autism are 1 percent, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) 8.7 percent, depression 1.7 percent and those entertaining the thought of suicide 8.2 percent.

Photo: Lo Pei-de, Taipei Times

The committee hopes to help students by introducing educational reforms instead of restricting their Internet use, Gau said, adding that the committee aims to provide support for teachers, social workers and medical staff.

Emergency medicine capacity for youth psychiatric issues is underwhelming, while there is a gap between patient referral and follow-ups for junior-high and senior-high students who need consultation and medical attention, the caucus said.

The new committee hopes to address the shortcomings and provide suggestions on how youth mental health policies can be improved, increase access to mental health and preventive resources, and help liaise between ministries.

Caucus head and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Cheng Ching-hui (陳菁徽) cited a 2023 survey which found that one-fifth of children and adolescents experience moderate emotional distress, one-10th once entertained thoughts of suicide and one-quarter said they had moderate insomnia.

More than half of junior-high students use social media every day, Chen said, adding that use of social media has increased instances of cyberbullying.

Depression, increased rates of attempted suicide, academic pressures, social media, family expectations and an increasingly digital environment are all aspects that affect children and adolescent mental health and raise the urgency of creating a safety net, deputy caucus head and Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wang Cheng-hsu (王正旭) said.

KMT Legislator Liao Wei-hsiang (廖偉翔) said a shortage of doctors and legal shortcomings make it difficult to address increasing demand to treat children and adolescent mental health issues.