Blog

Child health professionals increasingly are being asked to include screening for adverse early experiences as part of routine preventive pediatric care. Screening and providing appropriate follow-up would be a huge challenge for most practices. A good first step might be to incorporate routine screening for maternal depression, one of the most common risk factors for family psychosocial problems.

As the newsletter of the California Advocacy Network for Children with Special Health Care Needs marks its fifth year of publication, respondents to our biennial readership survey continued to express approval of the newsletter’s content, format, length, and frequency.  In a welcome indication of the broad national interest in improving systems of care for children with special health care needs, 45 percent of the respondents came from outside California, up from 24 percent in 2016.

When Magaly was 11, her mother, Olga, found suicide plans on her phone. Six years later, they continue to navigate the challenges of Magaly’s diagnosis of depression and psychosis. Their journey touches upon the importance of early identification of mental health issues, access to care, and the struggles for support. Children with chronic and complex physical conditions often have mental and emotional issues that go unrecognized and untreated.