Dr. John Straus is the Founding Director of the Massachusetts Child Psychiatry Access Program (MCPAP) and a 2020 Mom’s Inaugural winner of the Maternal Mental Health Hero Award. Dr. Straus is the mind and heart behind MCPAP, which has inspired and been the model for Maternal Mental Health doctor-to-doctor consultation programs across the U.S.
Dr. Sheila Marcus, meanwhile, is a Clinical Professor at the University of Michigan, Section Chief for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Co-Director of the Infant and Early Childhood Clinic (IECC). Her areas of interest include intergenerational transmission of illness, maternal child attachment and early risk factors for childhood psychiatric illness including presentation of autism in toddlers.
[00:01] Opening Segment
- Let’s get to know Dr. John Straus and his role in the MCPAP
- Meet Dr. Sheila Marcus, a clinical professor at the University of Michigan
[04:58] The Birth of the Massachusetts Child Psychiatry Access Program
- John’s role in making the Child Psychiatry Access Program possible
- Sheila’s motivation for joining and contributing to the Program
- John talks about the pediatricians’ engagement so far within the Program
[15:10] Accessible Child Psychiatrist Support
- The system in place to get help from a child psychiatrist
- What they mean by “rightsizing mental health”
- The limitations of psychiatry that psychiatrists should realize
[20:16] Sustainable Child Psychiatry Program
- A major concern on the primary care side according to Sheila
- The driving factors for states to adopt and sustain the child psychiatry program
- The role of health insurance
- The growth of the infant mental health lens
- Treating a mother’s pre- and post-partum illnesses
[30:00] Mental Health Screening in Prenatal Care
- We talk about the lack of mental health screening in prenatal care
- The assignments of obstetricians in prenatal care
- We have an interesting exchange about the specialty of pediatricians
[35:01] The National Network of Child Psychiatry Access Programs
- The importance of offering substance use services
- What to consider in administering medications to kids
- The role of the National Network of Child Psychiatry Access Programs
[40:34] Distribution of Psychotherapeutic Resources
- There are no intrinsic mental health issues
- How patients and providers can capitalize on the Michigan program
- The next big step now is distributing psychotherapeutic resources
- Their message to their younger selves you’d want to hear too!
[47:28] Closing Segment
- Final takeaways
- The growth of a national child psychiatry program
- The risk of mental health issues among kids
- Mental health screening in prenatal care
- The variety of child psychiatry programs per state
- You’re not incompetent. Sometimes, cases are just hard to address
- The life-altering benefit of the MC3
- Diagnostic clarification is key
- The impact of trauma on patients
- Sending behavioral health consultants across Michigan
- Available resources and programs in your state
- The “Next Gen Training”
- The importance of time among pediatricians
- States with no child psychiatry access program yet
- Go to nncpap.org to know where your state program is
- Do what you love and enjoy the journey.
Key Quotes:
“The problem is not an intrinsic mental health issue. It’s environmental, whether it’s trauma or some other social determinants of health.” – Dr. John Straus
“If you’re treating a mom for postpartum illness, or prepartum illness, you got to think about the baby and the attachment issues and how to make sure that the dyad is healthy.” – Dr. Sheila Marcus
Resources mentioned:
- Massachusetts Child Psychiatry Access Program
- National Network of Child Psychiatry Access Programs
Email [email protected] to connect with Sheila or check out www.med.umich.edu to know more about her work. Reach out to John by emailing [email protected] or visiting www.mcpap.com.
If you’d like to connect with me, you can find me on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or email me at [email protected] or [email protected]. To learn more about me visit https://www.medicalbhs.com/
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