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Edited by Jill Wright,
Nearly a million prescriptions for Ritalin and related drugs for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were dispensed last year – more than double the number of a decade ago. The figures have prompted a damning indictment of the system from experts who claim that the running down of mental health services has led to children being misdiagnosed and inappropriately prescribed...
Early diagnosis of children with Autism is crucial. Unfortunately, most children are not diagnosed until two or three years after the first signs of the disorder are identifiable. Why an early assessment and diagnosis is important Early interventions allow for better outcomes for children, especially in areas such as learning and cognitive ability, language development and adaptive functioning. Children can...
Edited by Jill Wright,
One of the traditions we've established with our grandchildren when they stay with us overnight is to take them down to the local children's bookshop - which happens to be quite close to Psychology Melbourne's Centre for Child and Family Care - and buy them a book of their choice. We follow that up with a bedtime reading. Our aim...
Edited by Jill Wright,
One can't help but imagine that a lot of parents will be wondering if they really know what's going on with their youngsters as a result of the Sunday Age series on student mental health issues. The latest installment last weekend provided some alarming statistics drawn from a survey of almost 4700 students from Years 7 to 12. It found...
Edited by Jill Wright,
Dr Alma Golden, an experienced pediatrician at a Texas children's hospital offers some advice for parents whose child might have received a diagnosis of ADHD under the controversial guidelines contained in the [also controversial] DSM-5. Dr Golden carefully presents both sides of the argument - "some people feel that this will benefit children who need help, and some fear it...
Edited by Jill Wright,
The ABC's Life Matters report on the Benevolent Society's Next 200 "Our Kids and Violence" dialogue at the NSW State Library last week provides some important and moving insights into child abuse and neglect. The report touches on the deprivation of critical experiences during the early years of childhood brain development - described in research by Dr Bruce Perry as "possibly...
Edited by Jill Wright,
One of the questions raised by Australian Population Census data of recent decades is whether we might be experiencing the era of the disappearing parent. The data, picked up in a report on family trends compiled by the Australian Institute of Family Studies, shows that among families with children under 18, the proportion of mothers in the workforce has steadily...