202666 Children with psychotic disorders: What mental health services do they receive and what is the outcome?

Tuesday, November 10, 2009: 3:15 PM

Katie L. Bonebrake, MA, LCPC , Mental Health Department, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
Melissa Azur, PhD , Mental Health Department, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
Psychotic disorders are rare among children. Little is known about service use or treatment outcomes of children with these disorders. This study addresses this gap and (1) examines differences in the types of mental health and support services received among children with and without psychotic disorders, and (2) examines the association between types of services received and clinical outcomes. The data are from the national evaluation of a federally funded mental health systems-of-care program designed to treat children with serious emotional disturbances. The sample (n=9551) includes children, 5-21 years, who entered into services between 1994 and 2005. Clinician assigned diagnoses at intake into services were extracted from case records. Caregiver report of sociodemographic characteristics, service use history, functional impairment, and behavior problems were assessed at 6-month intervals for 18-months. The analyses will be conducted in two steps. In the first step, multilevel models will be fit to estimate the probability of receipt of specific types of services as a function of clinical diagnosis and child and family characteristics. In the second step, functional impairment and total problems, among children with a psychotic disorder, will be modeled as a function of the services received. We hypothesize that service use will differ for children with and without a psychotic disorder and that the clinical outcomes of children with psychotic disorders will vary as a function of the constellation of services received. The study results will describe a rare population of children and inform service planning and delivery.

Learning Objectives:
1. Describe the mental health services received among children with and without a psychotic disorder. 2. Discuss the types of mental health and support services that are associated with improved clinical outcomes among children with psychotic disorders.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: B.A. Psychology M.A. Clinical Psychology LCPC (Maryland Licensure as a Clinical and Professional Counselor) Doctoral Student, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Several doctoral courses in Biostatistics, including the analysis of longitudinal data and multi-level modeling
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.