An increase in methylphenidate (Ritalin/R) prescriptions for the treatment of attenuation deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is being observed yet knowledge of the extent and variety of pharmacotherapy and behavioral treatments is limited and only regional. The primary goal of this study is to provide clinicians, researchers, and consumers with information on psychopharmacologic practices for ADHD.
The specific aims of the study are three-fold: to compare ADHD treatment patterns for HMO child members with ADHD treatment patterns for Medicaid child members; to describe the referral patterns for ADHD treatment among a sample of school-aged children; to survey parents' knowledge, attitude, and satisfaction with their child's ADHD treatment. The analytic plan includes multivariate statistical models such as logistic regression log- linear regression, and multiple regression. The study is designed to examine socioeconomic and practice setting differences in medication treatment patters for ADHD and to identify areas of the child's clinical treatment that warrant further attention. The finds will provide important information on how children in need of behavioral health services access treatment and will describe parental satisfaction with the result of medication treatment. A clear understanding of the parents' perspective regarding their child's treatment is relevant to the continuity of care for children, which can be related to the long-term effectiveness of treatment for ADHD. The findings are important for clinical management and improvement of care for children with ADHD. The benefits, from a public health perspective, include the opportunity to examine psychopharmacologic treatment patterns for youth with regard to access, patient education, and satisfaction with the provision of care. Knowledge of practice trends for ADHD therapy is useful for a fundamental understanding of pediatric psychopharmacologic practices in general. The instrument used to assess treatment may lead to future development of an ADHD treatment monitoring protocol for outcome studies of long-term treatment effectiveness.
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