Children’s mental health: Is poverty the diagnosis?

Ivana Jakovljevic, MD, Ashley P. Miller, MDCM, FRCPC, Barbara Fitzgerald, MD, FRCPC. Children's mental health: Is poverty the diagnosis? Some of the concerns seen by childhood health professionals may not be diagnosable psychiatric conditions, but emotional and behavioral responses to family financial insecurity. ABSTRACT: The case of a 6-year-old status. poverty is a risk factor for Case data boy who was referred to a physician mental health conditions in child- A 6-year-old boy was referred for by his school counselor for inves- hood and is associated with lower assessment and treatment recom- tigation of anxiety and possible at- academic achievement and impaired mendations by his school counselor tention deficit hyperactivity disor- cognitive development secondary because of anxiety, school difficul- der illustrates the need to consider to direct effects on the developing ties, and possible attention deficit the role of poverty when addressing hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

partment of Psychiatry at the University of British Columbia. Dr Miller is an assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry at UBC and a child and adolescent psychia-trist at BC Children’s Hospital and Vancou-ver Community Mental Health Services. Dr Fitzgerald is a developmental pediatrician at Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children.

Tags:

  Adolescent, Psychiatry

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