Treatment of parent-adolescent conflicts with the therapy program for adolescents with disturbances of self-esteem, performance and relationships (SELBST) - concept and results of a pilot study

Objective: Parent-adolescent conflicts often comprise the reasons for the referral of adolescents in treatment facilities. However, studies on the effects of behavioral interventions with this indication are rarely published, even in the international literature. In an explorative study, we assessed the efficacy and the acceptance of systemic-behavioral treatment modules of the treatment program for adolescents with disturbances of self-esteem, performance and relationships (SELBST). Method: Ten adolescents aged 12 to 18 years (mean age 14,7 years) and their parents with severe parent-adolescents conflicts according to clinical judgment and with increased parent and adolescent ratings of conflicts on the Conflict-Behavior-Questionnaire-Cologne were included in the study. Results: Analyses of pre to post changes showed a reduction in conflicts and/or an increase in conflict-solving skills as rated by the parents on various outcome measures. However, parents had problems attending the family sessions regularly and to implement therapeutic tasks in the daily family routine which may have limited the effects of the intervention. Conclusions: There is preliminary evidence that SELBST is a useful program for the treatment of parent-adolescent conflicts. To further increase the effectiveness of the program, knowledge from this trial has been considered in the development of the manual

Quality management in the German health system

Wiscow C, Breckenkamp J, Laaser U. Quality management in the German health system. In: Laaser U, Rademacher R, eds. Financing Health Care - A Dialogue between South Eastern Europe and Germany. International Public Health. Vol Series International Public Health, Vol. 18. Lage: Jacobs Verlag; 2006: 279-307

Effectiveness of Usual-Care Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Adolescents with School Absenteeism

Objective: Highly-controlled, randomized controlled trials have provided considerable evidence for the efficacy of outpatient cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for patients with school absenteeism and anxiety disorders. However, the effectiveness of outpatient CBT under routine-care conditions for youth with school absenteeism remains unproven. Methods: This observational study used file records to analyze the changes under routine CBT in a sample of n = 49 clinically referred adolescents aged 11 to 18 years with school absenteeism and mental disorders who were being treated in a university outpatient clinic. At the start and end of treatment, we assessed the severity of school absenteeism as well as mental health problems as rated by parents and by the adolescents themselves. Results: The analysis yielded a statistically highly significant decline in school absenteeism (large effect, Cohen's r = 0.80) and in mental health problems (small-to-large effect, Cohen's d = 0.33 to d = 0.82). However, a substantial proportion of the sample remained in the clinical range at the end of treatment. Conclusions: These findings suggest that CBT is effective for adolescents with school absenteeism when administered under routine-care conditions, though the results must be interpreted with caution because of the lack of a control condition

Family relations and behavioral-emotional problems in adolescents - an analysis with the adolescent version of the Family Relations Test for Children and Adolescents

Objectives: So far hardly any instruments are available for the German-speaking countries, covering family relations from the perspective of young people reliably. Moreover, the relationship between family relations from the perspective of young people and behavioral problems has been rarely investigated. Method: Based on the Family Relations Test, which has been developed originally for children, the Family Relations Test for Children and Adolescents was developed in order to assess the family relations from the perspective of adolescents (94 items, 44 % newly developed). A clinical sample (n = 152) and a fi eld sample (n = 132) was tested with this instrument and additionally behavioural problems of the adolescents were rated by the parents and the adolescents. Results: The two-factor solution of the principal component analysis resulted in a clear distinction between two factors describing positive and negative family relations. The internal consistencies (Cronbach's Alpha) of the scales describing positive and negative relations are between.91 and.93. On these total scores young people from the clinic sample describe overall stronger negative relations in their families compared to young people in the fi eld sample. Within the clinic sample moderate correlations between the extent of mental problems of young people rated by themselves and their parents could be found. Conclusions: Positive and negative relationships of young people to the individual family members and to all members of the family as a whole can be assessed reliably and factorially valid. As expected, signifi cant correlations between negative family relations and mental problems could be found. The adolescent version of the Family Relations Test for Children and Adolescents proves to be a useful tool, to assess family relationships from the perspective of young people and thus to identify possible factors maintaining mental disorders of young people

Adaptive Multimodal Treatment for Children with Attention-Deficit-/Hyperactivity Disorder: An 18 Month Follow-Up

The Cologne Adaptive Multimodal Treatment (CAMT) study demonstrated that adaptive and individually tailored multimodal treatment for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) [consisting of behavior therapy (BT) and/or stimulant medication] is highly effective. This study reports findings of the 18 month follow-up assessment. Parents and teachers completed broad range behavior scales (Child Behavior Checklist/Teacher Report Form) and standardized ADHD and oppositional defiant disorder/conduct disorder symptom rating scales. Children that used medication to treat ADHD at follow-up (N = 32) and those that did not (N = 34) were analyzed separately. Parents did not report significant changes in child behavior from posttest to follow-up. Teacher ratings revealed some aggravation of ADHD symptoms in children that received medication, but this was not significant after Bonferroni correction. The initial advantage of combined treatment over BT was no longer evident. It can be concluded that treatment for ADHD that is tailored to the assessed needs of children results in large treatment effects that are maintained for at least 18 months

Long-Term Course After Adaptive Multimodal Treatment for Children With ADHD: An 8-Year Follow-Up

Objective: This study reassessed adolescents and young adults (15-22 years old) who received individually tailored multimodal treatment for ADHD (behavior therapy and/or stimulant medication) during childhood 6 to 12 years after treatment (M = 8.8 years, SD = 1.6). Method: All participants (N = 75) provided information about their social functioning. Most parents (83%) completed behavior rating scales. Results: Participants demonstrated significant improvement in behavior during the follow-up period with effect sizes on ADHD symptoms of d = 1.2 and 68% of the former patients in the normal range at follow-up. Participants reported elevated rates of grade retention (51%), school dropout (13%), special education service use (17%), school change (47%), and conviction (16%), but few were unemployed (4%). Conclusion: This study provides evidence that the effects of individually tailored multimodal treatment for ADHD in childhood are maintained into adolescence and young adulthood. No hints could be found that continued medication results in a more favorable long-term outcome

Effectiveness of outpatient cognitive-behavioral therapy for adolescents under routine care conditions on behavioral and emotional problems rated by parents and patients: an observational study

Few studies have examined the effectiveness of outpatient cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) delivered in routine care settings for children and adolescents with mental disorders. This observational study examined changes in behavioral and emotional problems of adolescents with mental disorders during routine outpatient CBT delivered at a university outpatient clinic and compared them with a historical control group of youths who received academic tutoring of comparable length and intensity. Assessments were made at the start and end of treatment (pre- and post-assessment) using parent ratings of the German versions of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and self-ratings of the Youth Self-Report (YSR) scale. For the main analysis, 677 adolescents aged 11aEuro'21 years had complete data. Changes from pre- to post-assessment showed significant reductions in mental health problems on both parent- and self-ratings. Pre- to post-effect sizes (Cohen's d) were small-to-medium for the total sample (d = 0.23 to d = 0.62) and medium-to-large for those adolescents rated in the clinical range on each (sub)scale at the start of treatment (d = 0.65 to d = 1.48). We obtained medium net effect sizes (d = 0.69) for the CBCL and YSR total scores when patients in the clinical range were compared to historical controls. However, a substantial part of the sample remained in the clinical range at treatment end. The results suggest that CBT is effective for adolescents with mental disorders when administered under routine care conditions but must be interpreted conservatively due to the lack of a direct control condition

Parent- and therapist-rated treatment satisfaction following routine child cognitive-behavioral therapy

This observational study examined treatment satisfaction (TS) following routine outpatient cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in a large sample of children (n = 795; aged 6 to 10 years). TS was investigated in parent and therapist rating. Means, standard deviations and inter-rater correlations were calculated to investigate TS. Regression analysis was conducted to examine potential correlates of TS (patient-related variables, mental disorder characteristics, socio-demographic factors and treatment variables). High TS in parent and therapist rating was found, with therapists showing a lower degree of TS than parents (completely or predominantly satisfied: parent rating 94.1%, therapist rating 69.5%). A statistically significant, moderate inter-rater correlation was found. Regression analysis explained 21.8% of the variance in parent rating and 57.2% in therapist rating. Most of the TS variance was explained by mental disorder characteristics (parent-rated symptoms and therapist-rated global impairment at treatment end) and by treatment variables (especially the therapist-rated cooperation of parents and patients), whereas socio-demographic and patient-related variables did not show any relevant associations with TS. Based on these results, to optimize TS, therapists should concentrate on establishing a sustainable cooperation of parents and children during therapy, and work to achieve a low global impairment at treatment end