Working With Children and Adolescents Versus Adults discussion post
Working With Children and Adolescents Versus Adults discussion post
Working with Children and Adolescents Versus Adults
Importance of Developmental Assessments
Developmental assessments are useful in assessing the functioning of the pediatric population in terms of their behavior, motor abilities, social interaction, sensory abilities, cognition, adaptive skills and communication (Sadock, et al, 2014). Developmental assessment involves accurately evaluating the ability of a child to perform the appropriate developmental milestones as well as the ability to carry out the common activities of daily living. accordingly, performing development assessments can help to identify any potential developmental problem and also indicate the necessity of performing more diagnostic tests (Thapar et al; 2015) Working With Children and Adolescents Versus Adults discussion post. For example, for the pediatric population with autism or suspected case of autism, it is necessary to have all developmental aspects evaluated. This can help to identify any defect and implement the necessary interventions.
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Assessment Instruments for the Pediatric Population
Pediatric Symptom Checklist-17 (PSC-17): This instrument is useful in the evaluation and identification of behavioral and emotional changes/problems in children because the questionnaire has questions that address various psychological and behavioral problems. the tool is specifically utilized in the assessment of the psychosocial functioning of the pediatric population (Murphy et al; 2016).
The Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT) instrument: This instrument is specifically used in evaluating the risk for autism for the pediatric population aged between 16-months-30-months. The instrument consists of 23-questions and is frequently used to evaluate the risk of a child to autism spectrum disorders. The main aim of M-CHAT is to maximize the sensitivity in order to identify all children with autism (Robins et al; 2014). Children who fail over 3-items in the M-CHAT tool need to be referred to a specialist for further diagnostic assessment Working With Children and Adolescents Versus Adults discussion post.
Treatments for the Pediatric Population but not Adults
Kapvay: This medication is a long-acting clonidine and non-stimulant that is specifically utilized in the treatment of the pediatric population diagnosed with AD/HD and aged 6-17 years (Brown et al; 2018). Kapvay is two times/daily and the starting dose is 0.1mg. The dose can be increased to 0.2mg 2-time/daily.
Floortime: This is an intervention that specifically targets the pediatric population. the aim of the intervention is to support the cognitive and emotional development of the child by helping them to learn communication, emotional, and social skills (Mercer, 2015). During the therapy, the child together with the parent lay on the floor while playing and carrying out the assigned activities. Both the parent and therapist engage the child when performing the activities and follow the lead of the child during the play (Mercer, 2015) Working With Children and Adolescents Versus Adults discussion post.
The Role of The Parent in Assessment and Treatment
Parents play a key role in both the assessment and treatment process of their children. First, during the assessment parents play the role of giving information that can lead to an accurate diagnosis (Srinath et al; 2019). They are important informants because they are assumed to have the most contact with their children. Secondly, during both the assessment and treatment parents play the role of providing consent. Lastly, parents ensure that children adhere to the prescribed treatment and thus they play a very essential role in treatment adherence of their children (Srinath et al; 2019) Working With Children and Adolescents Versus Adults discussion post.
References
Brown KA, Samuel S, Patel DR. Pharmacologic management of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in children and adolescents: a review for practitioners. Transl Pediatr. 2018;7(1):36–47. doi:10.21037/tp.2017.08.02.
Mercer J. (2015). Examining DIR/Floortime™ as a Treatment for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Review of Research and Theory. SAGE Journals. 27(5), 625-635 Working With Children and Adolescents Versus Adults discussion post.
Murphy M, Paul B, Chiang C, Sturner R, Howard B, Abel M & Michael J. (2016). The PSC-17: Subscale Scores, Reliability, and Factor Structure in a New National Sample. Pediatrics. 138(3), e20160038.
Robins, D. L., Casagrande, K., Barton, M., Chen, C. M., Dumont-Mathieu, T., & Fein, D. (2014). Validation of the modified checklist for Autism in toddlers, revised with follow-up (M-CHAT-R/F). Pediatrics, 133(1), 37–45.
Sadock, B. J., Sadock, V. A., & Ruiz, P. (2014). Kaplan & Sadock’s synopsis of psychiatry: Behavioral sciences/clinical psychiatry (11th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer.
Srinath, S., Jacob, P., Sharma, E., & Gautam, A. (2019). Clinical Practice Guidelines for Assessment of Children and Adolescents. Indian journal of psychiatry, 61(Suppl 2), 158–175. Working With Children and Adolescents Versus Adults discussion post.
Thapar, A., Pine, D. S., Leckman, J. F., Scott, S., Snowling, M. J., & Taylor, E. A. (2015). Rutter’s child and adolescent psychiatry (6th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Blackwell.
Infant, childhood, and adolescent development are a continual interplay between nature (genetic or biologic predisposition) and nurture (environmental experiences). The nature/nurture continuum and debate will always be a part of your career as a PMHNP. Knowing common developmental milestone is important in the role as a child provider. Not only is it essential to the diagnostic process, but it is also important to the interdisciplinary interactions with other mental health professionals. The study of normal developmental processes, however, is only one tool that allows the mental health professional to understand the child being evaluated. There are many different assessment instruments and interviewing techniques that PMHNPs can have in their toolkit when working with children and adolescents. Working With Children and Adolescents Versus Adults discussion post.
In this Discussion, you examine the differences in assessing and treating children and adolescents versus adults. You take into consideration your own clinical experiences, as well as your experiences in your clinical rotation, and the information from the readings thus far.
Learning Objectives
Students will:
Analyze the importance of developmental assessments
Analyze assessment instruments used for evaluating children and adolescents
Analyze treatment options used for children and adolescents
Analyze roles parents play in assessment and treatment
To Prepare for the Discussion
Review the Learning Resources concerning psychiatric assessments and assessment tools.
Note: For this Discussion, you are required to complete your initial post before you will be able to view and respond to your colleagues’ postings. Begin by clicking on the “Post to Discussion Question” link and then select “Create Thread” to complete your initial post. Remember, once you click submit, you cannot delete or edit your own posts and cannot post anonymously. Please check your post carefully before clicking Submit! Working With Children and Adolescents Versus Adults discussion post.
By Day 3
Post your answers to the following:
Explain why a developmental assessment of children and adolescents is important.
Describe two assessment instruments and explain why they are used for children and adolescents but not adults.
Describe two treatment options for children and adolescents that may not be used when treating adults.
Explain the role parents play in assessment and treatment. Working With Children and Adolescents Versus Adults discussion post.
