Mental Health: Early in Life (infant to youth) Mental Health Services Director: Ms Lisa Lynch (Early in Life) Unit Head: Dr Michael Gordon (Child and Adolescent Program)
The Early in Life (EIL) Mental Health Service has a number of areas of research related to early intervention, Southern Health Butterfly Eating Disorders Program, School Refusal and evaluation of clinician’s assessment of suicidal adolescents. The main areas of research are: The CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) and Schools Early Action (CASEA) program is an early intervention program with children (Grades prep-3) with behavioural/ emotional problems. The CASEA program is utilising a comprehensive educational group program involving the parents and children within the Southern Health catchment. The project is half way through the research period. Understanding Kids is a pilot group for parents who have kids with challenging behaviours. Understanding Kids is an innovative eight week pilot program for parents with children who display challenging behaviours. Understanding Kids is developed from evidence pertaining to effective parenting group programs, behavioural analysis and sensory processing. The group focuses on promoting parents’ awareness of their own parenting practices, the way their child notices and responds to sensory information from the environment (visual, auditory, touch, taste, smell and movement) and challenging behaviours.
Understanding Kids will include ways for parents to better understand the messages communicated by their child’s behaviour in light of their child’s individual abilities and difficulties. The goal of Understanding Kids is to support parents to develop greater understanding and confidence in their ability to promote positive behaviour change in their child and decrease the stress associated with parenting. Questionnaires will be completed by parents prior to and following the completion of the group. Statistical analyses will evaluate changes in parenting stress and sense of parenting competence and changes in the child’s behaviour. Groups will consist of parents of similar aged children (for example 6-8 year olds) and will run sequentially over two years. The Southern Health Butterfly Eating Disorders Day Program provides intensive treatment for participants aged 12 to 24 years diagnosed with an eating disorder. An experienced multidisciplinary team provides individual, group and family therapy with a focus on nutritional rehabilitation; normalisation of eating behaviour; correcting dysfunctional attitudes towards eating and weight; body image issues and relapse prevention. An evaluation of the first 50 patients with a restrictive eating disorder has been completed. Ongoing assessment of the program with a larger cohort and patients with symptoms of bulimia is being undertaken.
School-refusal clinic is a collaborative research between EIL and the Centre for Developmental Psychiatry & Psychology treating youth 11 to 16 years who are suffering with anxiety and depression and are unable to attend school. School-refusal clinic is a randomised control trial which is investigating the treatment of school refusing young people who experience anxiety and/or depression using both psychological and pharmacological treatment approaches. The service is also undertaking an assessment of how staff assess suicidality in adolescent patients.
Research achievements for 2011 The Butterfly Eating Disorders Day Program is a joint, self-funded project between Monash CAMHS and the Centre for Developmental Psychiatry & Psychology (CDPP). The Butterfly Program has treated young people (12-24 years) with eating disorders using a multi-disciplinary approach in a day-program setting. Since 2007 the program has treated over 80 young people with a restrictive or bulimic eating disorder. A standardised assessment battery is administered pre-treatment, at 2 monthly reviews and at discharge enabling an evaluation of treatment outcome. The CDPP has brought to this collaborative project expertise in evaluation of clinical programs, data management, and analysis.
Southern Health Research Report 2011
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