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As a result, faculty have less time to identify and treat mental
health issues or to train residents (Ludmerer, 1999). The use
of structured teaching materials, which are easily accessible
to faculty with limited time and varied expertise in the essential
topic areas,
can help to alleviate the situation.
Case-based discussions are particularly well suited to learning
about management of
complex childhood illnesses (Armstrong, 1997; David and Patel,
1995; Hill et al., 1997;
Reilly and Lemon, 1997). To approach children with both psychological
and somatic
problems, residents must learn to synthesize biomedical findings
with multifaceted
psychosocial information and to understand that there is often
more than one appropriate
way to manage a case. The goal of this project was to develop
a standardized, case-based curriculum that covers important
topics in the management of medical and psychiatric comorbidity,
promotes collaboration between pediatricians and child psychiatrists,
optimizes the care of children and their families, and places
minimal demands on faculty
time and other resources. |
