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Family Friendliness of Community-Based Services for Children and Adolescents with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders and Their Families

An Observational Study

NIRBHAY N. SINGH, PhD, is a professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at the Medical College of Virginia/VCU, a clinical professor of psychology at the Virginia Commonwealth University, and director of the Commonwealth Institute for Child and Family Studies, Richmond, Virginia. His research interests are in psychopharmacology, childhood disorders, and cultural diversity. Address: Nirbhay N. Singh, Department of Psychiatry, Medical College of Virginia/VCU, P.O. Box 980489, Richmond, VA 23298–0489; e-mail: nsingh@gems.vcu.edu

W. John Curtis, MA

W. JOHN CURTIS, MA, was a research associate at the Commonwealth Institute for Child and Family Studies, Medical College of Virginia/VCU, Richmond, Virginia, when this study was undertaken. He is currently pursuing doctoral studies in developmental psychology at the University of Minnesota. His research interests are in mental health service-delivery systems for children and their families, developmental psychopathology, and resilience in children at risk for psychopathology and school failure.

Hollis A. Wechsler, BA

HOLLIS A. WECHSLER, BA, was a research assistant at the Commonwealth Institute for Child and Family Studies in Richmond when this study was undertaken. She is currently a doctoral student in counseling psychology at the Virginia Commonwealth University. Her research interests are in adolescent psychopathology, child mental health services, and cultural diversity.

Cynthia R. Ellis, MD

CYNTHIA R. ELLIS, MD, is an assistant professor of pediatrics and psychiatry, and director of the Child Development Center in the Department of Pediatrics at the Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University. Her research interests are in pediatric psychopharmacology, behavioral pediatrics, developmental disabilities, and ecobehavioral analysis.

Robert Cohen

ROBERT COHEN, PhD, is a professor of psychiatry, vice chairperson of the Department of Psychiatry at the Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, and director of the Virginia Treatment Center for Children in Richmond, Virginia. His research interests are in mental health services for children and adolescents, systems of care, and utilization management in mental health.

In systems of care, the term family friendly is used to describe services that are aligned with the needs of the families and delivered in a manner that shows professionals value and respect family involvement, empowerment, and cultural differences. The authors devised a 42-item structured observation instrument to rate the family friendliness of one component of the systems of care in Virginia for children with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) and their families. The instrument covers typical aspects of the meeting process, such as meeting management, case presentation, and formulation of service plans. It also allows for the collection of data on relevant characteristics of the meeting participants as well as demographic information on the children and their families. This instrument was used to rate the family friendliness of Family Assessment and Planning Team (FAPT) meetings, the purpose of which is to develop community-based service plans for children with EBD who are referred to the team. These teams meet in local communities and typically consist of representatives from the local juvenile court, education, health, mental health, and social service agencies. The authors observed 79 case presentations at 31 FAPT meetings in 7 localities. Although there were variations within, between, and among localities, the overall rating of family friendliness across all case presentations was good (63%). Improvements in the FAPT process are needed to assure increased family friendliness in the planning of services for children with EBD and their families.

Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders, Vol. 5, No. 2, 82-92 (1997)
DOI: 10.1177/106342669700500203


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