Youth with mental illness struggle to receive essential behavioral health care. One obstacle is denial of coverage by insurance. In California, managed care consumers may apply for independent medical review (IMR) which potentially overturns an insurance denial through the California Department of Managed Healthcare (CDMHC). The authors aim to…

The goal of this study was to document comorbidity profiles of psychiatric disorder and perceived need for treatment among urban adolescents with unmet behavioral health needs. Participants were 303 community-referred adolescents and their primary caregivers. Adolescents included both boys (54%) and girls and were primarily Hispanic (58%), African…

Objective: Compare a questionnaire based on the HEADSS approach (QBH-16) and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) in the screening of mental disorder in adolescents with behavioral problems. Methods: Adolescents from both genders 12-17 years-old presenting behavioral problems without a previous diagnosis of mental disorder were referred from…

Describes the United Kingdom Health Advisory Service's recommendation to provide access to psychiatric services to adolescents with sensory handicaps. Presents implications for this based on a case description of a deaf boy on an adolescent unit, discussing general and in-group behavior, behavior changes, and the responses of the other adolescents…

When parents bring their child or adolescent for consultation with a mental health professional, they are usually frustrated, worried, and confused. They may have a litany of complaints about symptoms and problematic behaviors exhibited by their son or daughter, and the entire family is likely to feel bewildered, caught up in intense, conflicting…

There exists a strong link between ADHD and academic underachievement. Both the core behavioral symptoms of ADHD and associated executive functioning deficits likely contribute to academic impairment. Current evidence-based approaches to the treatment of ADHD (i.e., stimulant medication, clinical behavior therapy and classroom behavioral…

Fifty children and adolescents with affective disorders and mental retardation admitted to a psychiatric inpatient unit were compared with 50 inpatients without depression. Behavioral symptoms occurred significantly more often in the affective group than in the comparison group. The behavioral presentation of affective symptoms in children and…

Discussed in a conference report on adolescent psychology are the varieties of behavioral problems and family dynamics by Richard Jenkins, biological growth during adolescence by J.R. Unwin, management of adolescents in a general hospital setting by Henry Kravitz, and educational problems in disturbed adolescents by S.J. Shamsie, Jean-L. Lapointe,…

This paper describes the Home-Based Crisis Intervention (HBCI) program in New York and the characteristics and outcomes of the families involved in a study that investigated the effectiveness of the program. The HBCI program provides short-term intensive in-home services to families with children who are at-risk of out-of-home placements. The…