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Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Telemental Health

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Abstract

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most prevalent psychiatric disorders diagnosed in children and adolescents (youth). ADHD is equally distributed geographically, but services are not. Access to expert evaluation and treatment remains limited for youth with ADHD living in rural areas, as well as for ethnic and racial minority youth. Telepsychiatry is a service delivery model with the potential to reach these youth and to develop collaborative models of care among local primary care physicians, remote telepsychiatrists, and local families. Care delivered through telepsychiatry can readily adhere to the practice parameters of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Work to date indicates that ADHD is the most common disorder treated through telepsychiatry. This article reviews the status of child and adolescent telepsychiatry, with particular focus on its potential to improve the care and outcomes of underserved populations of youth diagnosed with ADHD.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by funding from the National Institute of Mental Health (1R01MH081997), the University of Washington Institute of Translational Health Sciences Small Pilot Project Grant program, the University of Washington Royalty Research Fund program, and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Abramson Fund. The content here is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institute of Mental Health or other funders.

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No potential conflicts of interest relevant to this article were reported.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Seattle Children’s Hospital, Seattle, WA, USA

    Nancy B. Palmer, Carolyn A. McCarty, John R. Geyer & Amy DeSalvo

  2. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA

    Kathleen M. Myers & Ann Vander Stoep

  3. Department of Child Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, Seattle Children’s Hospital, M/S W3636, 4800 Sand Point Way, NE, P. O. Box 5371, Seattle, WA, 98105-0371, USA

    Kathleen M. Myers

  4. Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington School of Public Health, Seattle, WA, USA

    Ann Vander Stoep

  5. Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA

    Carolyn A. McCarty

Authors
  1. Nancy B. Palmer
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  2. Kathleen M. Myers
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  3. Ann Vander Stoep
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  4. Carolyn A. McCarty
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  6. Amy DeSalvo
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Correspondence to Kathleen M. Myers.

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Palmer, N.B., Myers, K.M., Vander Stoep, A. et al. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Telemental Health. Curr Psychiatry Rep 12, 409–417 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-010-0132-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-010-0132-8

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