Child psychiatry clinic cuts assessment wait times by months with intensive trial

A child and adolescent psychiatry clinic in Roskilde, Denmark, has slashed assessment wait times by dedicating two weeks solely to patient evaluations, Danish broadcaster DR reports. The trial saw the clinic complete over five times its usual weekly caseload, reducing the average wait for a full assessment from 165 days.

Under normal operations, the clinic assesses around 23 children and adolescents per week. During the two-week trial, staff completed 135 assessments by eliminating all non-essential tasks—canceling meetings, training, and leave—to focus exclusively on evaluations and documentation.

“We looked at each other and said, ‘We have to do something,’” said Signe Hagelskjær Lund, the clinic’s lead specialist psychologist. Long waits for assessments, she explained, burden patients, families, and staff alike. “It’s a tough week at work—and we eat a lot of candy and cake,” she admitted.

The process compresses what typically spans weeks or months into a single week. Patients undergo all necessary examinations in the first week, followed by a team evaluation and diagnosis in the second. Despite the accelerated pace, Lund emphasized that each assessment receives the same time and thoroughness as under normal conditions.

Psychologist Nadia Jungløv Mørtz, who usually sees 10 patients weekly, handled 15 during the trial. While the approach is unsustainable long-term—”It’s meaningful for us as clinicians, but we can’t maintain this intensity permanently,” she said—it demonstrates how targeted efforts can address backlogs. The clinic previously ran a similar trial in late 2025, cutting wait times by three to four months; this time, they expect to reduce delays by roughly six weeks.

The trial required meticulous planning, with walls covered in schedules to match patients with the right specialists. “We ensure each child isn’t just randomly assigned but seen by someone with the right expertise,” Lund noted. While routine treatment was temporarily deprioritized, acute cases still received immediate attention.

Wait times from referral to initial consultation remain, but the clinic aims to use time saved from faster assessments to improve treatment access. “When we save time in one area, we want to reinvest it in better, faster care,” Lund said.