A thorough and balanced resource for parents facing decisions about their children. This book deftly navigates the thorny subject of whether and when to give prescription psychiatric medication to children and adolescents. A perfect overview for parents looking for an accessible guide, this book takes readers through the basics of diagnosis and treatment in children and adolescents. Your Child in the Balance is chock full of a wide variety of clinical scenarios, each demonstrating the challenges faced by parents and professionals who are considering the use of medication. The book teaches the reader how to analyze the risks and benefits that characterize all medicines and that underlie the decision to medicate. The principles discussed in Your Child in the Balance will resonate with parents and professionals whether they are considering Ritalin and Adderall or Prozac and Zoloft. The use of antipsychotics, like Abilify and Risperdal, and even holistic sleep medicines, like melatonin, are put into an even-handed perspective, as is the question of whether psychiatric medicines are over or under prescribed to children. Your Child in the Balance culminates with an extended story of parents who struggle with whether to medicate their daughter, Rosie. Every parent will identify with the emotions experienced by Rosie’s parents as they wrestle with this important decision. The book concludes with a guide to help all parents navigate this vexing, but crucial, choice.

New and experienced psychotherapists alike can find themselves overwhelmed by an ethical quandary where there doesn't seem to be an easy solution. This book presents positive ethics as a means to overcome such ethical challenges. The positive approach focuses on not just avoiding negative consequences, but reaching the best possible outcomes for both the psychotherapist and the client. The authors outline a clear decision-making process that is based on three practical strategies: the ethics acculturation model to help therapists incorporate personal ethics into their professional roles, the quality enhancement model for dealing with high-risk patients who are potentially harmful, and ethical choice-making strategies to make the most ethical decision in a situation where two ethical principles conflict. Throughout the decision-making process, psychotherapists are encouraged to follow four basic guidelines: Focus on overarching ethical principles Consider intuitive, emotional, and other nonrational factors Accept that some problems have elusive solutions Solicit input from colleagues and consultation groups Numerous vignettes illustrate how to apply positive ethics to many different ethical challenges that psychotherapists will likely encounter in practice.

The MacArthur Competence Assessment Tool for Treatment (MacCAT-T) is the product of an 8-year study of patients' capacities to make treatment decisions. It is a semi-structured interview that assists clinicians in assessing a patient's competence to consent to treatment. The process provides a patient with information about their medical/psychiatric condition, the type of treatment being recommended, its risks and benefits, as well as other possible treatments and their probable consequences. During this process, the MacCAT-T prompts the clinician to ask questions that assess the patient's understanding, appreciation, and reasoning regarding treatment decisions.The MacCAT-T Manual is a large-format, examiner-friendly field manual for conducting actual competency assessments. The MacCAT-T Record Form is well designed for recording, rating, and summarizing patient responses. The training videotape, Administering the MacCAT-T, demonstrates an actual administration of the test with discussion, comments, and annotations by Drs. Grisso and Appelbaum.The book, Assessing Competence to Consent to Treatment, describes the place of competence in the doctrine of informed consent, analyzes the elements of decision making, and shows how assessments of competence to consent to treatment can be conducted within varied general medical and psychiatric treatment settings. Includes numerous case studies.

Why write another book on ethics? As practitioners we are involved both in the design and delivery of services to people with mental health problems. In common with all other professionals, our work has led to the experience of ethical dilemmas: typically, these have involved major confrontations, either with our col leagues or our consciences. This book, however, is not limited to a discussion of such major themes. Rather, we have tried to use a broader canvas: ethics, in our view, is really about the judgement of right and wrong in ordinary, everyday life. Ethics are highly personal: we fashion our own personal code from our experi ence of others, and from the 'tests' which bring meaning to our lives. Such experiences shape our individual values. We bring these codes and values to our work. We are not always aware of their influence in our dealings with people. Although we may not always be aware of it, all our actions pose an ethical question. Given that our work involves us in helping others to live ordinary, satisfying lives, this challenge heightens the intensity of our ethical dilemmas. This is most evident where our personal code conflicts with the implicit code of the health setting.

What should happen when doctors and parents disagree about what would be best for a child? When should courts become involved? Should life support be stopped against parents' wishes? The case of Charlie Gard, reached global attention in 2017. It led to widespread debate about the ethics of disagreements between doctors and parents, about the place of the law in such disputes, and about the variation in approach between different parts of the world. In this book, medical ethicists Dominic Wilkinson and Julian Savulescu critically examine the ethical questions at the heart of disputes about medical treatment for children. They use the Gard case as a springboard to a wider discussion about the rights of parents, the harms of treatment, and the vital issue of limited resources. They discuss other prominent UK and international cases of disagreement and conflict. From opposite sides of the debate Wilkinson and Savulescu provocatively outline the strongest arguments in favour of and against treatment. They analyse some of the distinctive and challenging features of treatment disputes in the 21st century and argue that disagreement about controversial ethical questions is both inevitable and desirable. They outline a series of lessons from the Gard case and propose a radical new 'dissensus' framework for future cases of disagreement. - This new book critically examines the core ethical questions at the heart of disputes about medical treatment for children. - The contents review prominent cases of disagreement from the UK and internationally and analyse some of the distinctive and challenging features around treatment disputes in the 21st century. - The book proposes a radical new framework for future cases of disagreement around the care of gravely ill people.

After you’ve made the decision to return to work following the birth of a child, you may still wonder, “Am I doing the right thing for my family?” and “How on earth do I make this work?” Now, The Working Mother’s Guide to Life sets out to offer you hundreds of answers to these types of questions, from nuts-and-bolts advice, such as finding top-notch child care and stress-free ways to manage your household, to more complex issues like separating from your child without feeling guilty and creating a rich, strong family culture that will thrive regardless of whether or not you are working. Author Linda Mason—herself a working mom and founder of an award-winning company that cares for the children of working parents across the country—provides a reassuring, practical, and comprehensive guide based on interviews with more than 100 successful working mothers from diverse backgrounds. Here are countless strategies and tips from these experts on everything from household chores and returning to work with a newborn to finding communities of support. • Building the Three Pillars of Success: A supportive workplace, a “partner-in-parenting,” and excellent child care • Running a household, holding down a job, and thriving while keeping it all together—from getting food on the table to getting out the door in the morning • Setting your priorities, including nurturing your family, satisfying your employer, and taking care of your own needs • Tips from caregivers on how to help your children blossom and grow in a variety of child care settings

Play Therapy: A Psychodynamic Primer for the Treatment of Young Children provides a contemporary, comprehensive exploration of the theory and technique of psychoanalytically oriented play therapy, addressing both the dearth of writings on these topics and the frequent lack of in-depth education on the basic principles and practice of psychodynamic play therapy offered by contemporary training programs for child clinicians. Divided into two distinct parts, this guide covers major theoretical issues -- including the role of play in human development, the application of basic psychodynamic concepts to work with young children, and the impact of contemporary techno-culture on play -- and offers pragmatic guidance on conducting play treatment and handling the complexities of treating young patients (e.g., initiating treatment, working with parents, managing aggression in the playroom). Among the book's standout features are: An abundance of clinical vignettes that illustrate childhood behaviors, common dilemmas, and potential therapist responses A summary of key concepts at the end of each chapter that underscores major takeaways and can be easily referenced by busy clinicians A glossary of key terms for each chapter for added comprehensibility Offering a skillful balance of broad but coherent foundational information as well as practical application, Play Therapy: A Psychodynamic Primer for the Treatment of Young Children functions both as an introduction for young therapists and as a guide for more experienced child clinicians who wish to expand their knowledge of play and its therapeutic potential.

Drug overdose, driven largely by overdose related to the use of opioids, is now the leading cause of unintentional injury death in the United States. The ongoing opioid crisis lies at the intersection of two public health challenges: reducing the burden of suffering from pain and containing the rising toll of the harms that can arise from the use of opioid medications. Chronic pain and opioid use disorder both represent complex human conditions affecting millions of Americans and causing untold disability and loss of function. In the context of the growing opioid problem, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) launched an Opioids Action Plan in early 2016. As part of this plan, the FDA asked the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to convene a committee to update the state of the science on pain research, care, and education and to identify actions the FDA and others can take to respond to the opioid epidemic, with a particular focus on informing FDA's development of a formal method for incorporating individual and societal considerations into its risk-benefit framework for opioid approval and monitoring.