Summary:
Assess Your Staff
In Episode 4 of Building Better Workflows, Dr. Lia focuses on enhancing the capability of medical staff in managing mental health issues effectively within their practices. She emphasizes the importance of mental health assessment, comparing it to handling physical conditions like respiratory distress in children, suggesting that similar competence is required for both. Dr. Lia highlights that while severe cases may require hospitalization, many situations, including mental health conditions like anxiety and depression in children, ADHD management, and others, can be managed outpatient with adequate training and tools.
The discussion covers essential topics such as suicide prevention, psychopharmacology, and the utilization of resources like the Child Psychiatry Access Program to support healthcare providers. Dr. Lia encourages the use of specific surveys found in a companion workbook, available at pediatric meltdown.com, to help staff assess their skills and identify training needs. These surveys cover critical areas, including trauma assessment and socio-emotional well-being, thereby aiding in pinpointing gaps in knowledge and practice. Dr. Lia’s narrative is geared towards empowering medical staff to feel confident in their abilities to handle mental health crises, ensuring they are well-prepared to address these challenges in their professional settings.
Bullet points of key topics
- Dr. Lia discusses the importance of assessing confidence and competence in handling mental health conditions within pediatric practices.
- She introduces a companion workbook with surveys designed to evaluate the staff’s readiness to address mental health concerns.
- Dr. Lia emphasizes the value of identifying training needs through these assessments to enhance outpatient management of mental health.