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Mental health
Draft proposed by Dr YK Shiu
Reviewed by Dr S P Wu
| Essential Skills | View other syllabuses and domains |
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.
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.
