The Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Section offer outpatient consultation, evaluation, testing and treatment for children and adolescents with problems related to behavior, feelings, emotions, thinking and learning. The approach involves teams of social workers, psychologists and psychiatrists, in close collaboration with educational specialists, primary care pediatricians and pediatric specialists.
Services begin with a comprehensive diagnostic assessment initiated with a social worker, psychologist or child and adolescent psychiatrist, depending on the preferences of the family and the referring physician. Consultations with other members of the team are obtained as needed, followed by a post-diagnostic conference with parents.
When indicated, outpatient treatment is provided. Treatments can include individual psychotherapy, parent guidance, family therapy, group therapy and medication. The selection or combination of these options is tailored to the individual needs of the individual child and family.
In addition to services at Ochsner Medical Center, child and adolescent psychiatric social workers are available at the health centers in Hammond, Mandeville and Slidell.
Children and adolescents hospitalized for medical reasons at Ochsner
Medical Center may also receive urgent or planned psychiatric
consultation. Indications for consultation include suicidal behavior,
delirium or disruptive behavior interfering with medical treatment,
coping with major or chronic medical illnesses (including
transplantation, cardiac surgery and cancer) and complex diagnostic
problems such as conversion syndromes. When needed, inpatient
hospitalization and transitional partial hospital programs are arranged
through River Place Behavioral Health, a service of Ochsner Health, providing state-of-the-art psychiatric care to those in need.
