A Quality Improvement Initiative for Detection of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in an Urban, Academic Safety Net Hospital.

Objective: Improve detection of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in a safety net, hospital-based, academic pediatric practice by optimizing screening with the Pediatric Symptom Checklist attention score (PSC-AS) and further evaluation with the Vanderbilt ADHD Diagnostic Rating Scale (VADRS).

Methods: We implemented a multi-component intervention by (1) optimizing electronic medical record (EMR) features; (2) adjusting clinic operational workflow; and (3) creating a decision-making algorithm for pediatric primary care clinicians (PPCCs). We extracted 4 outcomes manually from the EMR (pediatrician acknowledgment of a positive PSC-AS, documentation of a plan for further evaluation, distribution of VADRS, and completion of at least 1 VADRS).

Trajectories and correlates of mental health among urban, school-age children during the COVID-19 pandemic: a longitudinal study.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic posed numerous obstacles to psychosocial wellbeing for children. We conducted a longitudinal study to evaluate child mental health and social risks during the pandemic.

Methods: Participants were 172 caregivers of children aged 6-11 years old who attended well child visits within 6 months before pandemic onset at an urban safety net hospital in the US.

"If he doesn't buy in, it's a waste of time": Perspectives from diverse parents and adolescents on engaging children in ADHD treatment.

Engaging children and adolescents in ADHD care is critical for future independent disease management. However, there is a lack of evidence guiding health professionals and parents on how best to engage their children and adolescents in ADHD care. We recruited 41 diverse parents of children and adolescents with ADHD and 11 adolescents with ADHD from an urban, safety-net hospital to participate in in-depth, semi-structured qualitative interviews and then analyzed this data using thematic analysis.

Linguistic Inequities in ADHD Diagnosis among School-age Children Screened for Attention Problems in Primary Care.

Introduction: Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) remains underidentified among racial/ethnic minoritized populations. We examined whether parent reported screening questionnaires for attention problems in primary care mitigated these ADHD diagnostic inequities and identified contributing sociodemographic and clinical factors.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional electronic medical record (EMR) study in an urban, hospital-based primary care pediatric clinic of school age children (N=2212) with a completed Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC-17).

Changes in psychosocial functioning among urban, school-age children during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: There is concern about the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychosocial functioning among school-age children, who have faced unusual stressors during this time. Our goal was to assess mental health symptoms and social risks during COVID-19, compared to before the pandemic, for urban, racial and ethnic minority school-age children, and investigate the relationship between mental health and social risks.

Methods: We conducted a cohort study from September 2019 until January 2021 of children age 5-11 years old recruited from an urban safety net hospital-based pediatric primary care practice.

Six Stages of Engagement in ADHD Treatment Described by Diverse, Urban Parents.

Background: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental condition in children. Although ADHD is treatable, barriers remain to engagement in treatment, especially among socioeconomically disadvantaged and racial and ethnic minority families. Our goal was to examine the process by which families engage in ADHD treatment and to identify targets for an intervention to improve engagement in care.

Low sports participation is associated with withdrawn and depressed symptoms in urban, school-age children.

Background: The association between sports participation and mental health has not been studied in primary care samples of school-age children, nor in underrepresented minority children. We assessed the relationship between number of sports played and psychiatric symptoms in children ages 6-11 at well-child visits in an urban clinic.

Methods: Guardians of 206 children (85% Latinx) ages 6-11 completed Child Behavior Checklists (CBCL) in Spanish (66.