Registered nurses' experiences with generative artificial intelligence: a meta-synthesis of qualitative studies.

Child and adolescent mental health is a growing global health priority, with a substantial proportion of young people experiencing psychiatric disorders that remain unrecognized or untreated (); World Health Organization (WHO), (, ). Estimates suggest that more than half of pediatric primary care visits involve psychological or behavioral concerns, and pediatricians are often both the first point of contact and the primary prescribers of psychotropic medications for children and adolescents (, ). At the same time, specialist child and adolescent psychiatry and psychology services remain limited worldwide, including in many high-income countries, contributing to marked treatment gaps and delayed access to evidence-based care (, , ); World Health Organization (WHO), (). To address these gaps, there has been increasing emphasis on models that build the capacity of generalist providers to identify and manage common mental health problems in youth (); World Health Organization (WHO), (, ). Within a stepped-care framework, pediatricians are well-placed to provide first-line assessment, psychoeducation, and brief interventions for mild to moderate conditions, while referring more complex cases to specialist services (, ). Interdisciplinary collaborative-care models—linking pediatricians with child psychiatrists, psychologists, and other mental health professionals—have been associated with improved accessibility, quality, and cost-effectiveness of care (, ); World Health Organization (WHO), (). By formalizing co-management structures, shared care pathways, and regular case discussions, such models aim to bridge the gap between rising pediatric mental health needs and the limited availability of specialized services. Despite this central role, pediatricians and other primary care physicians often receive limited training in child and adolescent mental health during undergraduate and postgraduate education (, , ). More recent work has highlighted persistent gaps in behavioral and mental health competencies among pediatric trainees, including limited preparedness to assess and manage common emotional and behavioral conditions in children and adolescents (). Additional evidence suggests that acquisition of these skills during training is variable, with important differences in where and how pediatric trainees gain experience in behavioral and mental health care (). Together, these findings reinforce the need for structured and practice-oriented educational initiatives that strengthen frontline clinicians’ competence and confidence in pediatric mental health care. International literature similarly highlights gaps in knowledge, low confidence in managing behavioral and emotional disorders, and discomfort with prescribing psychotropic medications for children (, , ).