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France 5 Documentary Exposes Crisis in Youth Mental-Health Care

The broadcast revives scrutiny of long-term underfunding that left child psychiatry critically understaffed.

Overview

  • The film reports that one in five young people in France show severe depressive symptoms and that psychiatric emergency visits by minors have tripled in five years.
  • Over the past decade, more than half of child psychiatry beds have closed and the number of pedopsychiatrists has reportedly fallen to about 600 nationwide.
  • Families unable to access timely public care are turning to private clinics, with cited daily costs of about €210 for a single room near Annecy.
  • In Strasbourg, the regional health agency authorized an 80-bed Emeis (ex-Orpea) facility while a proposed public day hospital was refused, according to the investigation.
  • The filmmaker says the ARS and Health Ministry officials declined interviews and documents, even after mental health was named a national cause in late 2024, as clinicians warn of burnout and rising psychotropic prescriptions used as stopgaps.