Debate: Child and adolescent mental health professionals have a responsibility to diagnose Personality Disorder.

In the United Kingdom, mental health professionals have been historically reluctant to diagnose Personality Disorder in young people over many decades, and there is little evidence that much has changed. However, there are consequences to this reluctance. Personality Disorders in young people are absent from national prevalence studies and research is sparse, as a lack of diagnosed patients makes it hard to recruit for studies. Consequently, national policy-makers lack an awareness of the scale of the problem and the focus on service provision to address it. Deliberate misdiagnosis of Personality Disorder due to professionals' unwillingness to use the diagnosis is not only unethical but can also cause harm as it stops young people from receiving the evidence-based interventions and support that they require. Young people and families often experience reassurance and relief when they receive an accurate diagnosis. Professionals need to reconsider whether their reluctance to diagnose is in their patients' best interests.