| AUSTRALIAN toddlers will be screened for mental illness under a new, federal government funded program that some critics fear may medicalise normal childhood behaviour. THE Healthy Kids Check - starting on July 1 - will be predominantly conducted by GPs, who will refer children with troubling behaviour to psychologists or paediatricians. The program is expected to identify more than 27,000 children who the government believes will benefit from additional support, but who some doctors say will be wrongly labelled as having a mental illness. While the aim is to prevent mental illnesses - 50 per cent of which start in childhood - the Australian Medical Association and some mental health experts fear children may be misdiagnosed or given psychiatric drugs unnecessarily. ''We have to be careful we don't medicalise normal behaviour and that's a real caution with children,'' the AMA president, Steve Hambleton, said. ''There are genuine kids who need extra support to help them integrate into normal kindergartens and classrooms and a lot of the funding for that is driven by diagnoses so there's a perverse incentive to diagnose conditions like autism. There are kids who need it but we don't want to make normal kids abnormal.'' Frank Oberklaid, director of the centre for community child health at Melbourne's Royal Children's Hospital and chair of the expert committee appointed by the Minister for Mental Health, Mark Butler, to develop the check, said their priority was to ''first do no harm''. ''The critics are worried that we're going to slap diagnoses on three-year-olds and treat them with drugs but this is not the point of the exercise,'' Professor Oberklaid said. ''Many parents and preschool teachers face behaviours in children that are challenging and cause stress and distress. We also know that thankfully many of these are transient but we can't predict in a particular child which ones are going to disappear and which ones are going to go on and cause mental health problems. What we're really doing is having a more systematic way of finding out those kids who are causing difficulties and doing something about it.'' | 
"The program is expected to identify more than 27,000 children who the government believes will benefit from additional support, but who some doctors say will be wrongly labelled as having a mental illness" |
Comments06/21/2012 2:56am
I think the fear is right i also believe that a large number of cases will emerge of children misdiagnosed and will suffer from it. Alison 06/21/2012 3:52am
Yes I agree Laser... It is also a problem to label children when they are so young 07/24/2012 4:56am
The blog is related to the mental illness of the small child.I like the blog post to read. 11/23/2012 1:15am
Pretty adequate post. I merely stumbled aloft your web log and basic to say that I acquire extremely enjoyed annual your web log posts. Any methodology i will be able to be subscribing to your augment which i accomplishment you procession another time before long. 08/15/2012 11:03pm
Yes as you mention maternal, infant and toddler mental health problems are real, common and treatable. Toddlers who miss out on afternoon naps are more stressed, unhappy and at greater risk of lifelong mental health problems, Nice topic to discuss. 10/04/2012 4:27am
I am so grateful to find your particular post. I have bookmarked this website and I will keep visiting you for further such interesting posts. 08/28/2012 12:25am
I am really satisfied with this posting that you have given us. This is really a stupendous work done by you. Thank you and looking for more posts. 10/28/2012 12:07am
Advantageously, the article is really the best on this notable topic. I harmonize with your conclusions and will thirstily look forward to your approaching updates 09/07/2012 7:19am
Finally, I got what I was looking for. Don’t have enough words to thank you that you choose this particular topic to write about. Feeling really satisfied after reading 09/18/2012 1:34am
Advantageously, the article is really the best on this notable topic. I harmonize with your conclusions and will thirstily look forward to your approaching updates 09/24/2012 12:00am
Thank you for posting the great content for kids about mental illness test of them…I was looking for something like this…I found it quiet interesting, hopefully you will keep posting such blogs….Keep sharing 10/08/2012 3:49am
A fine quality educational blog! I like the way blogger presented information regarding the concerned subject. Thanks for posting such a nice blog. 10/10/2012 3:54am
Its a cool article to read by any common man. I found myself in the place of the traveller. Here lies the real worth and beauty of the article. The article had clearly demarcated the facts that are really true. 10/14/2012 12:58am
Toddlers to be Screened For Mental Illness what a news i have not heared that news upto to now.. thanks for keeping me upto date.Thanks for sharing this great article! That is very interesting I love reading and I am always searching for informative information like this. 10/18/2012 9:25pm
Thanks for sharing your knowledge buy this blog.I truly find it very useful. 12/04/2012 11:09pm
There can be no other occupation like gardening in which, if you were to creep up behind someone at their work, you would find them smiling. ~Mirabel Osler 01/01/2013 7:28pm
oh well, i am sure everything will be so alright and that's what I thought to have to know. i do like it then. this is just really so cool. 01/02/2013 9:45pm
oh well, i guess everything now seems to be doing alright and that's what I would thought to know now. i do like it that much. 01/07/2013 8:21pm
I'm sure you had fun upon writing this one. And I certainly like this. Thanks for the great share. 03/04/2013 3:10pm
Its been a great reading, really had a great time while doing so. Also thanks for sharing this important info. 03/17/2013 6:23am
Now of course, I am always looking forward that things might be so cool and awesome.. i love it then. 04/15/2013 11:51am
children may be misdiagnosed or given psychiatric drugs unnecessarily. 05/14/2013 7:47pm
Me and my friend were arguing about an problem similar to this! Now I realize that I had been correct. lol! Thank you for that information you article. AUTO 05/16/2013 1:21am
I like the cut of your job :) or at least your thought process but sorry to say, I honestly think you would have fully sold me on the idea had you been able to back up your premis with a substantial bit more solid facts. 05/21/2013 11:13am
Got some appealing information and would like to provide it a try. Applaud your work and keep sharing your information. Leave a Reply | AuthorKindyNews is a fun and interesting news publication for parents of kids aged seven and under. ArchivesMay 2013 CategoriesAll  |
RSS Feed