Beyond Diagnosis: Understanding and Managing Complexity in Child and Adolescent Mental Health

Many children and young people present in primary care with complex, layered symptoms that do not fit neatly into diagnostic categories. This session will offer GPs a practical and formulation-based framework for understanding medically unexplained symptoms, school refusal, emotional dysregulation, and family-related distress. The aim is to increase confidence in managing uncertainty, recognising complexity, and identifying when specialist input may be helpful.

This talk will cover:

• How emotional distress in children and adolescents often presents through physical symptoms, behaviour, or school refusal rather than words

• How to recognise when a presentation is relational, developmental, or trauma-linked rather than purely diagnostic

• Practical frameworks for assessing complexity, risk, and uncertainty in young people and their families

• When and how to refer for specialist psychiatric and psychotherapeutic support

This session is tailored for a UK GP and HCP audience.

This event is hosted by Microsoft Teams, a video conferencing service for hosting live virtual meetings. Microsoft Teams can be used from a computer, mobile or tablet. You don’t need an account to attend a virtual meeting.

Please take a moment to read the Spire Healthcare Privacy Notice