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Children's Mental Health (children + mental_health)
Selected AbstractsThe European Early Promotion Project: A new primary health care service to promote children's mental healthINFANT MENTAL HEALTH JOURNAL, Issue 6 2002Kaija Puura The number of children in Europe with significant psychologic and social problems is large and increasing. This article describes an innovative crosscultural method of working with families to promote the psychosocial well being of children and prevent the development of psychologic and social problems. A study designed to evaluate the effects of the service is also presented. Primary health care workers in five European countries have been trained to conduct promotional interviews with all prospective mothers in their area one month before and one month after birth. They have also been taught to work with mothers identified as in need of support as a parent by using a specific counselling model to try to prevent the onset of child mental health difficulties. Effects of the intervention on children's psychologic development and family adaptation are being evaluated at two years in comparison with matched groups not receiving the intervention. ©2002 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health. [source] Psychiatric disorders and the use of mental health services among children involved in bullyingAGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 2 2001Kirsti Kumpulainen Abstract This study had two aims: to evaluate the relationship between bullying and psychiatric disorders and to study the probability of using mental health services among children involved in bully/victim problems. The data consisted of interviews with 423 parents and 420 children. Diagnostic measures were based on the Isle of Wight Interview. Children involved in bullying as bullies, bully-victims, and victims were compared with other children. Children involved in bully/victim problems were more prone to have psychiatric disorders than noninvolved children. The probability of being disturbed was highest among male bullies, followed by male bully-victims and female victims (9.5-fold, 7.9-fold, and 4.3-fold, respectively) compared with noninvolved same-sex children. The most common diagnoses among children involved in bully/victim problems were attention deficit disorder, oppositional/conduct disorder, and depression. Furthermore, children involved in bully/victim problems were more likely to have used mental health services at some time during their lives and also during the previous 3 months. Special attention should be paid to children's mental health when dealing with bullying problems at school. Referral pathways to mental health services and factors affecting the referral processes among children should be further studied. Aggr. Behav. 27:102,110, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Waiting for scheduled services in Canada: development of priority-setting scoring systemsJOURNAL OF EVALUATION IN CLINICAL PRACTICE, Issue 1 2003T. W. Noseworthy MD MSc MPH FRCPC FACP FCCP FCCM CHE Abstract Rationale, aims and objectives An Achilles' heel of Canadian Medicare is long waits for elective services. The Western Canada Waiting List (WCWL) project is a collaboration of 19 partner organizations committed to addressing this issue and influencing the way waiting lists are structured and managed. The focus of the WCWL project has been to develop and refine practical tools for prioritizing patients on scheduled waiting lists. Methods Scoring tools for priority setting were developed through extensive clinical input and highly iterative exchange by clinical panels constituted in five clinical areas: cataract surgery; general surgery procedures; hip and knee replacement; magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning, and children's mental health. Several stages of empirical work were conducted to formulate and refine criteria and to assess and improve their reliability and validity. To assess the acceptability and usability of the priority-setting tools and to identify issues pertaining to implementation, key personnel in the seven regional health authorities (RHAs) participated in structured interviews. Public opinion focus groups were conducted in the seven western cities. Results Point-count scoring systems were constructed in each of the clinical areas. Participating clinicians confirmed that the tools offered face validity and that the scoring systems appeared practical for implementation and use in clinical settings. Reliability was strongest for the general surgery and hip and knee criteria, and weakest for the diagnostic MRI criteria. Public opinion focus groups endorsed wholeheartedly the application of point-count priority measures. Regional health authorities were generally supportive, though cautiously optimistic towards implementation. Conclusions While the WCWL project has not ,solved' the problem of waiting lists and times, having a standardized, reliable means of assigning priority for services is an important step towards improved management in Canada and elsewhere. [source] The Contributions of Political Life Events to Psychological Distress Among South AfricanPOLITICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 3 2000Michelle Slone The psychological consequences of adverse political experiences among South African youth were studied in a sample of 540 black and white adolescents from two age groups, evenly divided by gender. Three questionnaires were administered, measuring exposure to political life events, the presence of symptoms of psychopathology, and stressful personal life events during the previous 5 years. The first hypothesis, predicting a substantial contribution of stressful political experiences to psychopathology, was strongly supported; when stressful personal life events were partialed out, a significant effect for political life events remained both on general distress and symptomatology indices. The second hypothesis of a linear relation between exposure to political life events and severity of distress was also confirmed. The findings underscore the enduring impact on children's mental health of past apartheid policies in South Africa specifically, and adverse political environments in general. [source] Mental health status of Japanese-Brazilian children at Brazilian schools in JapanASIA-PACIFIC PSYCHIATRY, Issue 2 2010Shu Kondo MD PhD Abstract Introduction: Although the mental health of Japanese-Brazilian children in Japan has become a matter of concern, few studies have employed a psychological approach and no research of these children's mental health has previously been performed at Brazilian schools in Japan. Methods: The present study used a sample of 241 children aged 4 to 10 years at five Brazilian schools in Japan. The Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire was applied for their guardians and teachers to detect the probable cases of mental disorders. Demographic data of the children were also collected from their guardians and a further analysis was made to determine the risk factors of the probable cases of conduct disorders. Results: The proportion of probable cases was 0.8% for emotional disorders, 9.1% for conduct disorders, 2.1% for hyperactivity disorders, and 10.0% for any psychiatric disorder. The detected risk factors of conduct disorders were male sex, 8 to 10 years of age, living without a father, and not talking often with their teacher. Discussion: The proportions of probable cases of mental disorders were not as high compared to general prevalence ranges or earlier studies. Considering the school and home situation of the children, living without a father seemed to be the foremost risk factor of conduct disorders. [source] Assessing the Effects of Maternal Symptoms and Homelessness on the Mental Health Problems in their ChildrenCHILD AND ADOLESCENT MENTAL HEALTH, Issue 4 2009Ilan Harpaz-Rotem Objective:, This study examines the longitudinal association between measures of child well being and maternal posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, homelessness, substance abuse, and other psychiatric conditions. Method:, A sample of 142 mothers who were veterans of the US armed forces were assessed at program entry and every three months thereafter for one year. A repeated-measures with mixed-effects analytic strategy was used to assess the association of children's mental health, school enrolment and attendance with measures of maternal psychiatric symptoms and homelessness. Results:, Significant associations between mothers' psychiatric symptoms and child well-being were identified. However, the multivariable mixed-models suggest that increased depression and anxiety symptoms among children were associated primarily with mothers' PTSD, and not depression, symptoms. Conclusions:, These findings provide evidence of an association between maternal and child mental health and may suggest that treating maternal PTSD symptoms may also benefit children, regardless of whether the child was also exposed to the traumatic experience. [source] Gender as a Moderator of the Relationship between Child Exposure to the World Trade Centre Disaster and Behavioural OutcomesCHILD AND ADOLESCENT MENTAL HEALTH, Issue 3 2009William Bannon Objectives:, This study examined the moderating effect of gender on the relationship of child exposure to the World Trade Centre (WTC) disaster and child behavioural difficulties among a sample of very young children who resided in New York City on September 11, 2001. Methods:, The authors interviewed 180 parents of children who were age five or younger on September 11th, 2001. Parents were asked to provide information concerning family demographic characteristics, their own and their children's mental health, their children's behavioural difficulties in the aftermath of the WTC disaster, the number of WTC disaster experiences their children were exposed to, and the number of stressful life events their children experienced prior to the disaster. Results:, Gender moderated the relationship between child exposure to the WTC disaster and several behavioural outcomes. Specifically, among children who were highly exposed boys evidenced significantly higher scores on parent report measures of internalising and total behavioural difficulties relative to girls. Conclusions:, Findings are contrary to other research on children and trauma, in which gender differences are more often reported with higher rates of internalising behaviour among girls. Future research is needed that examines how and whether younger children's vulnerabilities in the face of trauma may differ by gender. [source] Emotions and the Development of Childhood Depression: Bridging the GapCHILD DEVELOPMENT PERSPECTIVES, Issue 3 2008Pamela M. Cole ABSTRACT,There is a gap between scientific knowledge about typical and atypical emotional development and efforts to identify and serve children's mental health needs. The gap can be bridged with research that integrates clinical perspectives into the study of emotional development. This is illustrated in the current study by discussing typical emotional development in early childhood and how it differs from the atypical features of emotion seen among preschool-aged children with depression. New research directions are suggested that integrate the study of typical emotional development with clinical evidence of risk for and presence of affective disorders in young children. [source] | ||||||||||||||||