Childhood and Neurodevelopment Disorders Flashcards
Effects of childhood mental illness
- long term mental disorders in adulthood
- Thwarted development
- Diminished productivity
- Conflict within family and in community
- Juvenile justice involvement
- Special education resources needed
- physical health impairments
Biological Risk Factors
Genetic predisposition
Neurobiological
Psychological Risk Factors
temperament
Environmental Risk Factors
Abuse or trauma
Low socioeconomic status
parenting
Resiliency
- adapt to change/adversity
- inner strength
- healthy coping strategies
- function and strong emotions
- reach out for help/support
- form nurturig relationship with adults when parent is unavailable
Protective factors: Promote mental health by increasing resilience
- positive self image
- family cohesion and absence of discord
- positive relationship with atleast one parent
- positive early family experiences
- support
- academic achievement
- positive peer relationships
- temperament
Role of PMH nurse with children, adolescents and family focuses on:
- Do a thorough assessment
- Early identification is KEY
- identifying family needs
- Promoting children’s rights in treatment setting
- Avoid seclusion and retraint
- notifying parents
Assessment begins with the interview
- Interaction based on developmental level
- Assess interactions between child and parent
- Children provide better information about internal symptoms (mood, sleep, suicide ideation)
- Parents provide better information about external symptoms (behavior, relationships)
Assessment Process for Children & Adolescents
Follows same format as adults except:
* Children need simple phrases (more concrete)
* Corroborate information with adult
* Direct questions, rather than open-ended
* May use play media
* May not be able to provide accurate time-line
Conducting the Interview
Assessment includes
- Family functioning: parent-child relationship
- Current problem: nature, severity, length; how upsetting? Better/ worse? Triggers/events? Describe behaviors at home, response to discipline, empathy violence, risks
- History: previous treatment, family history, developmental & social
- Mental status
- Physical exam
Cognitive
ability to learn and solve problems
Ex: a 2-month-old baby learning to explore environment with hands or eyes; a five-year-old learning how to do simple math problems
Social and Emotional
ability to interact with others, including helping themselves and self-control
Ex. a six-week-old baby smiling; a ten-month-old baby waving bye-bye; a five-year-old boy knowing how to take turns in games at school
Speech and Language
ability to both understand and use language
Ex. a 12-month-old baby saying his first word; a two-year-old naming parts of her body; or a five-year-old learning to say “feet” instead of “foots”.
Fine motor
ability to use small muscles, specifically their hands and fingers, to pick up small objects, hold a spoon, turn pages in a book, or use a crayon to draw.
Gross Motor
ability to use large muscles
Ex. a six-month-old baby learns how to sit up with some support; a 12-month-old baby learns to pull up to a stand holding onto furniture, and a five-year-old learns to skip.
Developmental Assessment
Intellectual Functioning
Gross motor functioning
Fine motor functioning
Cognition
Thinking and perception
Social interaction and play
Basic Principles of children’s behavior
All behavior has meaning
Address the need behind the behavior
Children want to behave and please those they care about
Difficulty communicating their needs
Basic communication guidelines
Treat youngsters with respect and preserve their dignity.
Seek solutions, not blame.
Avoid “no” and “don’t”; use “do” and “let’s do it this way”
Instill hope for success by helping the child:
* Learn to communicate needs clearly
* Manage feelings
* Learn that they are competent and worthwhile
Interventions for Children and Adolescents
Behavioral interventions
Bibliotherapy
Expressive arts therapy
Journaling
Music therapy
Family interventions
Psychopharmacology
Disruptive behavior management
Play therapy
Intervention: Play Therapy
- Appropriate for younger children
- The “language” of children
- Vehicle for change, expresses of feelings, trust, relationship building
- Rooted in psychodynamic therapy
- Creative and dynamic process: cannot be standardized
- Therapist in role of trusted participant- not aberrant perpetrator
