Background Nearly half of all mental health disorders develop prior to the age of 15. Early assessments, diagnosis, and treatment are critical to shortening single episodes of care, reducing possible comorbidity and long-term disability. In Norway, approximately 20% of all children and adolescents are experiencing mental health problems. To address this, health officials in Norway have called for the integration of innovative approaches. A clinical decision support system (CDSS) is an innovative, computer-based program that provides health professionals with clinical decision support as they care for patients. CDSS use standardized clinical guidelines and big data to provide guidance and recommendations to clinicians in real-time. IDDEAS (Individualised Digital DEcision Assist System) is a CDSS for diagnosis and treatment of child and adolescent mental health disorders. The aim of IDDEAS is to enhance quality, competency, and efficiency in child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). Methods/design IDDEAS is a mixed-methods innovation and research project, which consists of four stages: 1) Assessment of Needs and Preparation of IDDEAS; 2) The Development of IDDEAS CDSS Model; 3) The Evaluation of the IDDEAS CDSS; and, 4) Implementation & Dissemination. Both qualitative and quantitative methods will be used for the evaluation of IDDEAS CDSS model. Child and adolescent psychologists and psychiatrists (n = 30) will evaluate the IDDEAS` usability, acceptability and relevance for diagnosis and treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Discussion The IDDEAS CDSS model is the first guidelines and data-driven CDSS to improve efficiency of diagnosis and treatment of child and adolescent mental health disorders in Norway. Ultimately, IDDEAS will help to improve patient health outcomes and prevent long-term adverse outcomes by providing each patient with evidence-based, customized clinical care. Trial registration ISRCTN, ISRCTN12094788. Ongoing study, registered prospectively 8 April 2020 10.1186/ISRCTN12094788

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Mental health disorders often develop during childhood and adolescence, causing long term and debilitating impacts at individual and societal levels. Local, early, and precise assessment and evidence-based treatment are key to achieve positive mental health outcomes and to avoid long-term care. Technological advancements, such as computerized Clinical Decision Support Systems (CDSSs), can support practitioners in providing evidence-based care. While previous studies have found CDSS implementation helps to improve aspects of medical care, evidence is limited on its use for child and adolescent mental health care. This paper presents challenges and opportunities for adapting CDSS design and implementation to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). To highlight the complexity of incorporating CDSSs within local CAMHS, we have structured the paper around four components to consider before designing and implementing the CDSS: supporting collaboration among multiple stakeholders involved in care; optimally using health data; accounting for comorbidities; and addressing the temporality of patient care. The proposed perspective is presented within the context of the child and adolescent mental health services in Norway and an ongoing Norwegian innovative research project, the Individualized Digital DEcision Assist System (IDDEAS), for child and adolescent mental health disorders. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) among children and adolescents serves as the case example. The integration of IDDEAS in Norway intends to yield significantly improved outcomes for children and adolescents with enduring mental health disorders, and ultimately serve as an educational opportunity for future international approaches to such CDSS design and implementation.

Objective: Electronic health records (EHRs) are used for both clinical practice and research. Because mental health service users are underrepresented when seeking perspectives on EHR use, the authors examined service users' awareness, attitudes, and opinions about EHR data storage and sharing.Methods: A mixed-methods, cross-sectional design was used to examine 253 Norwegian mental health service users who were recruited online to complete a quantitative and qualitative (free-text) survey about EHR utilization.Results: Most participants were aware that EHRs were stored (95%) and shared (58%). Most thought that patients benefited from storing EHRs (84%), trusted authorities about EHR sharing (71%), were willing to share records to help others (75%), felt they benefited from sharing (75%), and thought EHR sharing was ethical for health care and research (71%). Fewer were aware of record sharing for research (36%), and 62% were aware that shared data were anonymized. Of the participants, 69% recognized privacy risks associated with sharing. Lack of transparency and skepticism about anonymization as well as misuse of data were concerns and perceived risks. Overall, mental health service users thought that EHRs should be shared for policy development (81%), education and training (85%), improving care quality (89%), research (91%), and clinical decision support (81%). Highlights• Health care authorities use electronic health records (EHRs) for clinical practice and research, including enhancing quality of care, improving access to care, providing more efficient service delivery, and producing better clinical outcomes.• Mental health service users are underrepresented in providing their perspectives on EHR use, and information about their opinions toward EHR use is limited.• Knowledge about service users' awareness and attitudes toward EHR use should be a part of clinical practice and research planning.• This study's findings indicate that mental health service users support EHR use for improving patient care and research.