African American Child

Question Therapy for Pediatric Clients with Mood DisordersAn African American Child Suffering From DepressionAfrican American Child  BACKGROUND INFORMATION The client is an 8-year-old African American male who arrives at the ER with his mother. He is exhibiting signs of depression. Client complained of feeling “sad” Mother reports that teacher said child is withdrawn from peers in class Mother notes decreased appetite and occasional periods of irritation Client reached all developmental landmarks at appropriate ages Physical exam unremarkable Laboratory studies WNL Child referred to psychiatry for evaluation Client seen by Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner MENTAL STATUS EXAM Alert & oriented X 3, speech clear, coherent, goal directed, spontaneous. Self-reported mood is “sad”. Affect somewhat blunted, but child smiled appropriately at various points throughout the clinical interview. He denies visual or auditory hallucinations. No delusional or paranoid thought processes noted. Judgment and insight appear to be age-appropriate. He is not endorsing active suicidal ideation, but does admit that he often thinks about himself being dead and what it would be like to be dead. The PMHNP administers the Children’s Depression Rating Scale, obtaining a score of 30 (indicating significant depression)  RESOURCES § Poznanski, E., & Mokros, H. (1996). Child Depression Rating Scale–Revised. Los Angeles, CA: Western Psychological Services. Decision Point OneBegin Zoloft 25 mg orally dailyRESULTS OF DECISION POINT ONE  Client returns to clinic in four weeks Slight increase in mood No HAM-D results No adverse events reported Decision Point TwoIncrease dose to 37.5 mg orally dailyRESULTS OF DECISION POINT TWO  Client returns to clinic in four weeks Depressive symptoms decrease by 20%. Client reports feeling a little bit better Decision Point ThreeMaintain current doseGuidance to Student Health Science Science Nursing NURS PSYCHIATRI Share QuestionEmailCopy link Comments (0)