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Category: Parents

Managing challenging behaviors in children
Managing challenging behaviors in children

December 14, 2023

“There is a lot of research on programs to help parents manage their children’s behavior. It is not complex for clinicians to learn key evidence-based principles and share them with parents, even in brief office visits,” explains Elena Man, MD, a board-certified pediatrician and faculty member at The REACH Institute. We asked Dr. Man to

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Navigating the ADHD stimulant medication shortage
Navigating the ADHD stimulant medication shortage

October 31, 2023

“The ADHD stimulant medication shortage is affecting patients, families, pharmacists, and clinicians,” explains Andrew Adesman, MD, a developmental pediatrician specializing in ADHD.

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Sleep Smart: Back-to-School Edition
Sleep Smart: Back-to-School Edition

August 25, 2023

REACH faculty, Dr Kowatch, emphasizes that it’s essential for caregivers to recognize the challenges that can arise when transitioning from summer to a more structured school routine. “Parents have got to anticipate there may be an adjustment period for the first week or two.”

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Supporting mental health needs in rural areas
Supporting mental health needs in rural areas

April 20, 2023

Rural healthcare providers can be overwhelmed—and understaffed with specialists. Discover how REACH inspired Elizabeth Wallis, M.D., to build a community to support her patients.

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ADHD medication “holidays”?
ADHD medication “holidays”?

June 13, 2022

As summer rolls around, families may ask whether their children can have a “holiday” from their psychoactive medication, especially for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). We asked Lawrence Amsel, MD, MPH, a REACH faculty member and associate professor of psychiatry at Columbia University, to lay out the pros and cons.

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Helping families deal with holiday stress
Helping families deal with holiday stress

November 17, 2021

“In some ways the holidays this year will be harder than last year for many people,” said Deborah Buccino, MD, pediatrician and REACH board member. “Earlier, we had pretty clear-cut rules about what you could and could not do safely. This year, we have a lot more gray areas.”

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8 Tips for Working with Mental Health Therapists
8 Tips for Working with Mental Health Therapists

October 20, 2021

Many patients who have mental health conditions need talk therapy in addition to the treatment you provide as the pediatric primary care provider (PCP). If you practice in an area where therapists are available, we hope you have developed referral relationships, as you learned in your REACH training. You may also see patients who are already working with a therapist. In either case, the communication between you and the therapist makes a huge difference in the quality of care the two of you provide. To learn how PCPs and therapists can collaborate to improve the mental health of children and adolescents, we talked with clinical psychologist Kevin Stark, PhD, a founder of The REACH Institute’s CATIE program, and pediatrician Hilary Bowers, MD, director of behavioral and mental health services at Children’s Primary Care Medical Group, a large pediatric practice in San Diego and Riverside counties in California.

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Getting through to difficult patients and families
Getting through to difficult patients and families

September 8, 2021

It’s 10:30 Monday morning, and you’re 45 minutes behind. Earlier, you had to confront a receptionist about coming in late again. You have to get out today by 4:30 so you can get to your daughter’s softball game. Beating under all this stress is worry about your mom, who has been diagnosed with stage 2B breast cancer.

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Helping patients through divorce
Helping patients through divorce

February 22, 2021

“Parents who are going through a divorce really want to believe their children are OK,” said Lisa Blum, PsyD, a licensed clinical therapist on the faculty of The REACH Institute’s CATIE program. “They’re terrified that they’re hurting their kids. So if Sally is doing her homework and Johnny isn’t acting out, the parents think, ‘Whew, good, they’re fine!’ But often they’re not fine.” Though divorce rates in the US have been declining for years – including, according to early reports, during 2020 – the rates are still high. Each divorce or separation brings loss, disruption, and pain to any children involved.

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August 27, 2026

Nearly half of pediatric outpatient visits involve a behavioral health concern, yet many pediatricians report feeling unprepared to diagnose and treat mental health conditions. While new residency requirements represent an important step forward, there remains a…

August 25, 2026

Time is running out for primary care clinicians to join a CBT training in 2026 ⏰ The REACH Institute is offering two trainings for clinicians to learn practical, evidence-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) techniques they can…

August 20, 2026

REACH has never been about sitting through a lecture and calling it professional development. At our inaugural Alumni Conference on September 26, you’ll go beyond the basics with practical, evidence-based strategies designed for immediate and sustainable…

August 19, 2026

Your patients spend most of their time at school. Learn to work with the systems and people they encounter there. REACH’s Collaborating with Schools in Pediatric Care program is for pediatric primary care clinicians, clinical psychologists,…

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