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- 34th AGM & 2025 ASM
Mental health
Draft proposed by Dr YK Shiu
Reviewed by Dr S P Wu
Essential Skills
Domain 1 Professional Values & Behaviour
Domain 2 Communication
Domain 4 Patient Management
Domain 5 Health promotion and Illness Prevention
Domain 9 Safeguarding
Additional desirable skills are listed in each proposal. These recommended skills are to be acquired as opportunity arises.
Download Syllabus (28 November 2023)
VIEW another syllabus
Basic Training
Basic Principles of Emotional and Behavioural Development
- Understand the basic theories of childhood cognitive and social development, and attachment theory.
- Understand the genetic, psychological, familial (parental mental health problems), neurological and socio-economic factors in the mental well-being of children and young persons (CYP).
Physical illness and mental health
- Understand the impact of physical illness on mental health
- Determinants of mental well-being
- Understand and being able to explain the determinants of mental well-being
Common Childhood behavioural problems
- Understand the basic approach to common problems:
- Feeding problems, infantile colic
- Failure to thrive
- Temper tantrums
- School refusal
Drug and alcohol problems
- Recognises the effects, common presentations and potential for harm of alcohol and other abusive drugs on CYP
- Applies knowledge about the addictive potential of alcohol and other drugs to the management of CYP
- Recognises the impact of alcohol and drug abuse on child’s mental health
Common mental health conditions
Understand the diagnostic criteria of common mental health conditions:
- Attention deficit – hyperactivity disorder
- Autistic spectrum disorder
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Conduct disorder
- Oppositional – defiant disorder
- Eating disorder
- Deliberate self-harm
Psychosis and Schizephrenia
Early recognition and referral.
Desirable skills
Basic counselling skills.
Higher Training
Dysfunctional parent-child attachment
Understand the impact of violence and abuse on the development and mental health of a CYP.
Organic psychiatric disorders
Workup for organic disorders with psychiatric presentations.
Functional physical disorders
Approach to helping CYP who present with physical symptoms that have a predominantly psychological substrate.
Physical illness and mental health
- Offer assessment, counselling and referral when necessary for CYP whose mental health was adversely affected by their physical illness.
- Impact of parents and family on mental health.
- Understand the impact of parental substance abuse and parental mental illness on mental health of CYP.
- Understand the work of Comprehensive Childhood Developmental Service.
Common mental health conditions
- Assess and manage common mental health conditions of CYP.
- Attention deficit – hyperactivity disorder
- Autistic spectrum disorder
- Depression
- Psychosis
- Conduct disorder
- Oppositional – defiant disorder
- Eating disorder
- Deliberate self-harm
- Suicidal ideation
- Recognise psychiatric disorders that need referral to child psychiatrists for management
Psychosis and Schizophrenia
Assessment of possible organic causes.
Desirable skills
Motivational Interviewing.
