A detailed psychiatric assessment in a child/adolescent is essential to identify emotional and behavioral problems that often go unnoticed in this population. A psychiatric assessment helps to identify developmental delays in children as well as deficits in social skills and speech (Srinath et al., 2019). Furthermore, a thorough psychiatric assessment helps the child/adolescent better understand their difficulties and offers them an opportunity to think about the information they share.
Symptom rating scales appropriate for a psychiatric evaluation of a child or an adolescent include the Child and Adolescent Symptom Inventory-4R (CASI-4R) and the Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC). CASI-4R rates affective and behavioral features. It is used in assessing mood disorders in the pediatric population, specifically depressive and dysthymia symptoms. Other psychiatric disorders assessed by CASI-4R include generalized anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder, ODD, ADHD, conduct disorder, schizophrenia, separation anxiety disorder, social phobia, autism, anorexia, and bulimia nervosa (Salcedo et al., 2018). The PSC is a psychosocial screen developed to help identify cognitive, behavioral, and emotional problems in the pediatric population so that proper interventions can be initiated promptly (Murphy et al., 2016). It has two versions: the parent-completed version and the youth self-report(Y-PSC) for adolescents aged 11 years and above.
Psychiatric treatment modalities used only in children and adolescent patients include Play Therapy and parent-child interaction therapy. Play Therapy entails using toys, dolls, blocks, games, and drawings to help a child recognize, identify, and express feelings (Bhide & Chakraborty, 2020). A combination of talk and play gives the child an opportunity to better recognize and manage their feelings, behavior, and conflicts. Parent-child interaction therapy is used in parents and children struggling with behavior problems or connection using physical coaching sessions. Parents interact with their children, while the therapist guides the family toward positive interactions.
The parents’ role in assessment is to provide detailed information about the child’s symptoms. A child may give their symptoms but may not remember details, such as duration and the order the symptoms occurred. Obtaining information from the parents helps to minimize discrepancies in the patient’s history, thus facilitating diagnosis and management (Bhide & Chakraborty, 2020). In addition, parents are valuable agents in carrying out therapeutic principles for a child or adolescent behavioral problems in the home setting, such as positive and negative reinforcement, activity scheduling, and time management.
A thorough psychiatric assessment is important in the pediatric population to identify emotional and behavioral problems and speech and social skills deficits. The CASI-4R and PSC are suitable rating scales for affective, cognitive, behavioral, and emotional problems in the pediatric population. Treatment modalities exclusive to the population include play therapy and parent-child interaction therapy.
Bhide, A., & Chakraborty, K. (2020). General Principles for Psychotherapeutic Interventions in Children and Adolescents. Indian journal of psychiatry, 62(Suppl 2), S299–S318. https://doi.org/10.4103/psychiatry.IndianJPsychiatry_811_19
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