Faculty Publications

Preliminary Examination of a New Mental Health Screener in a Pediatric Sample

Document Type

Article

Keywords

adolescents, children, Mental health, pediatrics, screening

Journal/Book/Conference Title

Journal of Pediatric Health Care

Volume

24

Issue

3

First Page

168

Last Page

175

Abstract

Introduction: Approximately 80% of children with mental health problems do not receive services. It has been recommended that mental health screening be conducted during pediatric visits (Huffman & Nichols, 2004). Methods: The Primary Care Mental Health Screener (PCMHS) was designed to screen for DSM-IV disorders (APA, 1994) in children. The PCMHS was completed by 328 parents of 3- to 12-year-olds. Results: The long-form showed adequate to excellent internal consistency across three age groups and eight subscales with one exception (depression in preschoolers). Next, data were used to shorten the screener without compromising internal consistency, resulting in a 32-item short-form. Discussion: The long-form of the PCMHS is a promising mental health screener. The internal consistency of the proposed short-form should be examined with a separate sample. Additional research is needed to improve the reliability of the PCMHS for 3- to 5-year-olds and, in general, to examine the validity of this screener. © 2010 National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners.

Department

Department of Psychology

Original Publication Date

5-1-2010

DOI of published version

10.1016/j.pedhc.2009.05.006

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