DC: 0–5 system in clinical assessment with specialty pediatric populations

Abstract

Early childhood mental health (ECMH) programs provide an opportunity to provide specialized mental health services to vulnerable young children and connect them with necessary evidence‐based early intervention. However, there is a paucity of descriptive and explorative studies of the clinic protocols in the literature. Even within published work, there is a lack of standardization in clinical models and diagnostic systems limiting comparison and extrapolation. This paper describes how the DC: 0–5 framework guides the development of the model for an ECMH clinic embedded in the context of academic pediatrics. It also highlights the opportunity the DC 0–5 presents for developing the standardized protocols and a mechanism for standardized data collection in clinical settings. The paper demonstrates the utility of using the DC 0–5 in protocol development, assessment and data collection the mental health assessments of 87 children ages 0–6 were reviewed to gather information on history, presenting problems, parent‐child relationship, and mental health diagnoses. This paper and associated data underscore the utility and necessity of ECMH clinics while identifying challenges in the field.

Assessment and Diagnostic Classification Using DC:0-5 in Early Childhood Mental Health Clinics: The Protocol for the Developmental Psychiatry Diagnostic Challenges Study (DePsy)

“…In providing a framework for the standardized psychiatric assessment of psychopathology in infants, toddlers, and preschool children [4], the DC:0-5 is currently widely used by clinicians working in the field of infant and early childhood mental health [21]. In contrast to its clinical utility, studies empirically corroborating the DC:0-5 are scarce.…”

“…Given the high prevalence of mental health disorders in infants, toddlers, and preschool children, early childhood mental health (ECMH) clinics have become embedded within child psychiatric clinical care in many places. However, there is still a paucity of research on both the care services and the population, and a lack of standardization makes it difficult to compare results [4]. In order to optimize clinical care in ECMH, comprehensive studies on psychopathology, diagnoses, the demographic characteristics of families, and their access to support systems, are needed.…”