Hospital referral patterns in pediatric neuropsychology |
| |
| Authors: | Keith Owen Yeates M. Douglas Ris H. Gerry Taylor |
| |
| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Pediatrics , The Ohio State University ,;2. Children's Hospital , Columbus, OH;3. Department of Pediatrics , University of Cincinnati ,;4. Children's Hospital Medical Center , Cincinnati, OH;5. Department of Pediatrics , Case Western Reserve University ,;6. Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital , Cleveland, OH |
| |
| Abstract: | The practice of pediatric neuropsychologists was examined by reviewing all referrals made in 1 year to neuropsychology programs located in three children's hospitals. The review identified 472 cases, 75% of whom were between the ages of 7 and 11. The sample included 86 inpatients and 386 outpatients. The most common diagnoses, accounting for 87% of the cases, were learning disability, traumatic brain injury, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, seizure disorder, primary psychiatric disorder, phenylketonuria, idiopathic mental retardation, brain tumor, leukemia, stroke, and encephalitis. The most common referral sources, accounting for 92% of the cases, were neurologists, pediatricians, parents, physiatrists, neurosurgeons, oncologists, specialists in metabolic disease, psychologists, rheumatologists, and psychiatrists. The distribution of diagnoses and referral sources differed significantly for inpatients and outpatients and across the three hospitals. The results may distinguish child neuropsychology from adult neuropsychology and highlight the diversity that characterizes its practitioners. |
| |
| Keywords: | |
|
|
