Pediatricians Are On the Front Lines of Mental Health Care. New Resources Can Help.

Over the last decade, a number of studies have shown that children are increasingly seeking mental health care from their primary care pediatrician.

A report from the National Center of Health Statistics found that mental health disorders were diagnosed in nearly 13% of visits to health centers among children and adolescents ages 17 and younger in 2023. And just this summer, researchers in Massachusetts found that the rate of child primary care visits with a diagnosis of anxiety had nearly tripled in that state between 2014 and 2023.

In addition, a 2025 study led by Nationwide Children’s Hospital’s behavioral health researchers and published in Clinical Pediatrics illustrated challenges facing primary care clinicians when it comes to children’s mental health. Researchers surveyed 148 pediatric primary care clinicians and found that ongoing training, collaborative infrastructure and team-based care are important supports for primary care clinicians.

In response, experts at The Kids Mental Health Foundation, founded by Nationwide Children’s, have developed new Primary Care Clinician Guides to help physicians address children's mental health needs.

Based on the previous research and learnings from pediatric primary care psychologists at Nationwide Children's, The Kids Mental Health Foundation gathered insights to create resources on this national issue. They developed guides, which were tested with pediatricians, psychologists, and families.

Those guides were refined and retested over a two-year span to ensure they would be used in practice and recommended to other providers, and include resources on:

• Anxiety: Tools for children ages 6 and older, including strategies for addressing avoidance, gradually facing anxiety triggers, challenging unhelpful thoughts and managing panic symptoms.
• Depression: Resources for children ages 12 and older that introduce strategies such as behavior activation and challenging unhelpful thoughts.
• ADHD: Parent-focused information covering behavioral therapy, medication and school support for children diagnosed with ADHD.

The resources are designed to complement pediatric care and can be downloaded at no cost or order up to 50 per pediatrician. Clinicians also have access to videos to demonstrate how to use the guides in practice. If pediatricians want more training in the topics of depression, anxiety, or ADHD they will have access to a Behavioral Health Learning Library, where they can receive continuing education.

“The goal isn't to turn every pediatrician into a mental health specialist,” said Ariana Hoet, PhD, executive clinical director of The Kids Mental Health Foundation and a pediatric psychologist at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. “It is to make sure pediatricians have practical tools that can help them begin important steps toward treatment with families. When a concern comes up during a routine visit, having a trusted resource to share can give parents a place to start.”

Pediatricians and primary care providers can access or order free Primary Care Provider Guides. These resources are available at no cost thanks to support from Macy’s, The Beehive Alliance, Children’s Practicing Pediatricians, and Dr. and Mrs. Bruce P. Meyer. Continued donor support will help expand access to these guides and equip even more healthcare providers nationwide with trusted mental health resources.