OBJECTIVE: To determine the mental health needs and optimal treatments for children and families in "real world" settings, data-gathering strategies are needed that can be easily implemented across a variety of clinical settings. To address this need, the authors developed and piloted a "clinician-friendly" questionnaire that includes demographic, psychosocial, medical, and family history variables, such as those routinely gathered in standard clinical evaluations. METHOD: Optical scanning technology was used to encode data from more than 1,900 children, including 1,458 consecutive referrals in four military child psychiatry clinics, 285 consecutive admissions to a civilian psychiatric state hospital, 71 pediatric patients, and a community sample of 113 children. RESULTS: Despite geographic and logistic obstacles, clinical data were reliably obtained across multiple settings. Data analyses revealed meaningful differences across samples in subjects' presenting complaints, and a range of psychosocial, demographic, and background variables. Data were characterized by an apparently high degree of accuracy and completeness. CONCLUSIONS: Findings illustrate the importance and feasibility of standardized data-gathering approaches in routine clinical settings and clarify the hazards as well as the opportunities afforded by these research approaches. Such data-gathering tools appear to have significant merit and deserve further implementation and testing across a range of clinical and research settings.
OBJECTIVE: To determine the mental health needs and optimal treatments for children and families in "real world" settings, data-gathering strategies are needed that can be easily implemented across a variety of clinical settings. To address this need, the authors developed and piloted a "clinician-friendly" questionnaire that includes demographic, psychosocial, medical, and family history variables, such as those routinely gathered in standard clinical evaluations. METHOD: Optical scanning technology was used to encode data from more than 1,900 children, including 1,458 consecutive referrals in four military child psychiatry clinics, 285 consecutive admissions to a civilian psychiatric state hospital, 71 pediatric patients, and a community sample of 113 children. RESULTS: Despite geographic and logistic obstacles, clinical data were reliably obtained across multiple settings. Data analyses revealed meaningful differences across samples in subjects' presenting complaints, and a range of psychosocial, demographic, and background variables. Data were characterized by an apparently high degree of accuracy and completeness. CONCLUSIONS: Findings illustrate the importance and feasibility of standardized data-gathering approaches in routine clinical settings and clarify the hazards as well as the opportunities afforded by these research approaches. Such data-gathering tools appear to have significant merit and deserve further implementation and testing across a range of clinical and research settings.
Authors: Susan D Phillips; Teresa L Kramer; Scott N Compton; Barbara J Burns; James M Robbins Journal: J Behav Health Serv Res Date: 2003 Jan-Feb Impact factor: 1.505
Authors: Adam B Lewin; R Lindsey Bergman; Tara S Peris; Susanna Chang; James T McCracken; John Piacentini Journal: J Child Psychol Psychiatry Date: 2009-12-17 Impact factor: 8.982