Online Program

333883
Innovative Directions for Recognizing and Meeting the Needs of Young Children and Families


Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Joy Osofsky, Ph.D., Departments of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, LA
Phyllis Glink, University of Chicago, Irving Harris Foundation, Chicago, IL
Chandra Ippen, Ph.D., Psychology, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
Constance Cohen, Judge, Psychiatry, LSU Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, LA
Forty years ago in Chicago, the host city of this year’s American Public Health Association Annual Meeting, the astute businessman and philanthropist, Irving Harris recognized the importance of infancy and the early childhood years. Believing in the capacity of infants and young children and the importance of nurturing their development, he established a network of programs around the country to gain knowledge, improve training and interventions, and influence public policy.  These four decades have witnessed an explosion of knowledge in this field including knowledge about infant mental health being more fully integrated into education and training. There has been growing recognition of the influences of traumatic experiences on young children, the effects of abuse, neglect on brain development, and the relationship of  early adverse experiences and childhood and adult cognitive and emotional development as well as medical problems.  There is accompanying data on public health approaches and interventions that can right the developmental trajectories and improve adult prognosis.  The presentations in this session will describe different training, intervention, services, and public policy approaches developed to address these important issues.  Innovative efforts will be discussed that influence outcomes for the most vulnerable maltreated young children by building collaborations across systems that interface with child welfare.  Important evidence-based training to build expertise in providing evaluations and treatment for very young children and their families will be described including applications to diverse populations and the research that supports the evidence based practice.  New ways of integrating mental and behavioral health evaluations and services in primary care clinics will be discussed which involve meeting families where they are to make treatment much more accessible and acceptable.  With all of these efforts to expand knowledge, the important public policy issues must be a part of the effort.  The presentations will include a discussion of ways to influence public policy including building public-private partnerships to effect change.  The session will increase knowledge about the importance of the early years and describe programs and efforts that have made a difference in the lives of young children and families.

Learning Areas:

Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related education
Public health or related organizational policy, standards, or other guidelines

Learning Objectives:
Describe policy and practice issues concerning the well-being of young disadvantaged children Discuss ways to improve outcomes for young maltreated children involving systems and policy changes Describe ways to integrate behavioral health services in primary care settings to meet the needs of young children and their families.

Keyword(s): Mental Health, Child/Adolescent Mental Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: Dr. Joy Osofsky is Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center. She is co-PI for the Mental and Behavioral Capacity Project in Louisiana designed to integrate mental and behavioral health services in primary care clinics and schools. She is also Director of the LSUHSC Harris Center for Infant Mental Health and has been working in this field for over two decades.
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.