ACAMH E-Newsletter 2007

The Association's AGM is fast approaching and with it, the opportunity to focus on achievements and progress made over the last twelve months. Officers' reports and summarised accounts have been circulated and we would encourage you, if you are unable to join us for the meeting, to read through these papers and contact us with queries, comments or ideas.

Professor Patricia Howlin, who has led the Association through a very busy two years, will retire as Chair at the AGM and be succeeded by Professor David Cottrell. We would like to thank Pat for the time, work, commitment and counsel she has given the Association during her term of office and wish her all the best for the future. We would also like to welcome David as our incoming Chair; we look forward to working with him and are certain he will continue to build on past achievements and receive encouragement and support from officers and members alike.

ACAMH News

ACAMH Master Class

The third in ACAMH's Master Class series will focus on Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). The date identified for this

Emanuel Miller 14 March 2008

ACAMH is delighted that Professor Sir Michael Rutter has agreed to deliver the 2008 Emanuel Miller Memorial Lecture. The theme of

Publications

June 2007

The June issue of JCPP contains a broad range of papers from prevention and clinical trials to examination of associates of partner violence in teenagers, via clinical characteristics, basic experimental science and longitudinal studies. The issue opens with a scholarly and authoritative review by Susan Spence and Alison Shortt of prevention trials for depression among children and adolescents - essential reading for those interested in prevention trials in any area. The theme of depression is picked up later in the issue where the interactions between risk factors for depression are looked at by Krista Lisadhal Medina et al, in association with white matter volume and majijauna use. Elsewhere in the issue is a rare five-year follow-up by Ivan Eisler and colleagues on a cohort of adolescent patients with anorexia nervosa who had received either conjoint family therapy or separated family therapy. The study confirms the efficacy of family therpay in such settings, showing that those who respond well to outpatient family intervention generally stay well, though there is evidence that, at least early on in treatement when raised levels of parental criticism are evident, the use of conjoint family meetings is less helpful than other approaches. Other areas considered in the June issue include sleep patterns in children with ADHD, tic disorder and co-morbitidy; genomic imprinting and the expression of affect in Angelman syndrome; prevalence and correlates of partner violence and the results of two different longitudinal studies, one on conduct problems and the other on children at family risk of dyslexia. The wide base of papers ensures there is something to interest all our readers.

JCPP: Special Section

The Editors of JCPP are continuing the series of special sections on topics for which there is a particularly high level of research activity. The next special issue will be on the topic of Pre- and Peri-natal Processes in Child Mental Health Disorder; the editor will be Edmund Sonuga-Barke and the scope of papers will encompass those examining biological programming during pre-natal development, those exploring the interplay between adverse foetal environments or peri-natal adverse events and genetic factors, papers reporting studies of the developmental link between pre-/peri-natal risk and child adjustment, as well as conceptual and theoretical papers and authoritative reviews of this emerging field. Submissions will be subject to the normal refereeing process and are to be submitted to the JCPP editorial office by September 2007, clearly identified as for consideration for the Special Section. For further details please contact Sam Moore: sam.moore@acamh.org.uk

May 2007

The May 2007 CAMH is a special issue on Practice Guidelines, featuring a series of papers that report how national guidelines and good practice standards have been implemented and evaluated in clinical services. The papers are designed to demonstrate the challenges involved and highlight how services need to be open, flexible and responsive in order to ensure that the current evidence base informs and underpins everyday clinical practice.

Paul McArdle opens up the issue with 'Comments on NICE guidelines for depression in children and young people', focusing on the recommendation that cognitive-behavioural and interpersonal psychotherapies should be the treatments of choice for child or adolescent depression. The paper argues that in so doing, NICE goes beyond the evidence adduced and may risk distorting practice in a small specialty where randomised controlled trials are comparatively rare and usually involve small samples. This paper is complemented by the next one which discusses the results of a survey of anti-depressant prescribing practice and the provision of psychological therapies in a South London CAMHS before and after the publication and implementation of NICE guidelines for the treatment of depression. Other topics covered in this special CAMH issue include 'ADHD - do guidelines translate into service'; 'quality of life for people with autism' and 'children's participation rights'. Two more practical papers - 'Implementing national guidelines in real life: the Peterborough Neurodevelopmental Service' and 'A characterisation of tier 2 services in child and adolescent mental health' - complete a comprehensive collection of articles on this relevant and very worthwhile area.