Parent–child inpatient treatment for children with behavioural and emotional disorders: a multilevel analysis of within-subjects effects

Abstract

BackgroundThe importance of parental involvement in child treatment is well-established. Several child psychiatric clinics have, therefore, set up inpatient family units where children and parents are both actively involved in the treatment. Unfortunately, evidence supporting the benefits of these units is sparse.MethodsWe evaluated the effectiveness of inpatient treatment for families with severe parent–child interaction problems in a child psychiatric setting. Consecutive admissions to the parent–child ward (N = 66) were studied. A within-subjects design was used with four assessment points (baseline, admission, discharge, four-week follow-up). Outcome measures were 1) parent and teacher ratings of child behaviour, and 2) parent self-ratings of parenting practices, parental strains and parental mental health. Data were analyzed using multilevel modelling for longitudinal data (piecewise growth curve models).ResultsAll parent-rated measures improved significantly during the four-week treatment period (d = 0.4 – 1.3). These improvements were significantly greater than those observed during the four-week pre-admission period. In addition, benefits were maintained during the four-week follow-up period. Only parents’ self-efficacy in managing their child’s behaviour showed continued improvement during follow-up. Teacher ratings of children’s disruptive behaviour at school were stable during the pre-admission period and showed significant improvements at follow-up (d = 0.3 – 0.4).ConclusionsWe conclude that parent–child inpatient treatment has positive effects on child and parent behaviour and mental health, and can therefore be recommended for children with behavioural and emotional disorders and severe parent–child interaction problems.

Video Intervention Therapy for Primary Caregivers in a Child Psychiatry Unit: A Randomized Feasibility Trial

“…The former compares favorably with other trials delivered in child inpatient units, for example, it fared better than the Rimehaug et al study of 2019 (8), where recruitment was 67.5% and eligibility was not reported, yet fared worse than Ise et al trial (2015) (10) where a 91% eligibility and 93% recruitment was obtained. A third of the children admitted to the unit where institutionalized, which became the main reason for not being eligible.…”

Making the case for the family model in in-patient child and adolescent mental healthcare

“…7 We therefore do not know whether this assumption is correct and clear evidence exists that more can be achieved when children are admitted with their parent or carer than when the child is admitted alone. 10 …”

“…7 We therefore do not know whether this assumption is correct and clear evidence exists that more can be achieved when children are admitted with their parent or carer than when the child is admitted alone. 10 We note that some children with emotional or behavioural difficulties can benefit from time away from the family home, particularly when ongoing stress in the child-parent relationship is the main source of their distress. We would argue that removing the child from the home temporally is unlikely to address the difficulties long term and intensive work is required with parents to make the systemic change that will be required for the child to benefit when discharged.…”

The Effect of Pretreatment Conditioning by Mothers on Dental Behavior of Children: A Randomized Clinical Trial

“…Various studies have examined the child's behavior during dental treatments (3,8,9). However, studies on parental involvement have mainly focused on subjects such as improving weight adjustment (10,11), promoting physical activity (12), and treating behavioral, emotional, and psychological disorders (13). To the best of our knowledge, there is only one study assessing the effect of parents' pretreatment education on child behavior during dental treatments.…”