Developmental
Interventions in Primary Care
- Developmental
outcomes are a product of an individual’s characteristics and his or
her experiences in multiple contexts (e.g. family, child care).
- Central
role of the family physician cannot be overemphasised
- Referral
of family members to substance-treatment, if necessary (studies show that
drug-affected children whose parents no longer use substances have
improved cognitive development) (Griffith et al, 1994; Schuler et al,
2003)
- ongoing
emotional support
- assessment
of effect of a disability diagnosis on the child’s siblings
- helping
families to access appropriate community resources
- provide
perspective of physical and mental health challenges
- assess
family coping mechanisms & interpersonal relationships
- assess
economic barriers
- assess
cultural influences
- Children
with speech and language delays should be linked to local resources as
early as possible
- Therapist-administered
one-one-one interventions more effective for children with speech
difficulties, children with expressive or receptive language delays do
well in group/daycare type interventions
- Increase
caregiver’s capacity for responsiveness to infant
- Caregiver’s
internal working models of caregiving can be assessed and shifted through
prenatal/postnatal parenting classes and groups
- Parental
risk factors such as substance use or mental illness can be assessed and
appropriate resources offered
- Referral
to community agencies to increase caregiver’s social support
network
- Strong
attachment between a mother and her infant decreases the chances of abuse
and neglect, and energizes and motivates her to participate in the
services she and the infant may need.
- The
resources a mother has available to her are a greater predictor of
maternal interaction performance, child attachment, and development than
whether or not she used substances
