WORKSHOP: Pediatric Medical Psychiatry Unit - Lessons from the First Year

Learning Objectives

1. Identify most common medical and psychiatric comorbidities;
2. Analyze current status of care for this population; and 
3. Evaluate the outcomes for this new program after one year of functioning.

Abstract

It is known that the comorbidity between mental and physical illness is prevalent. However, few programs are designed and dedicated to provide services for this specific population, that presents multiple synergistic risks for complications and chronification of symptoms. We plan to describe the first pediatric medical psychiatry program developed in Alberta, in a pediatric unit at the Peter Lougheed Centre, in Calgary. This program is multidisciplinary, and has both psychiatrist and pediatrician, family counselors, dietician, occupational and recreational therapists, teachers, psychologists. We plan to share the experience of one year of functioning. We will present the unit, admission process, the design, and the decision making conducted by the multidisciplinary team. At this moment, 52 patients have participated in the program. The most common presentation are eating problems (anorexia nervosa, avoidant and restrictive feeding and eating disorder, unspecified feeding and eating disorder, disordered eating), followed by overdoses, and somatic disorders. Most patients were discharged home, while around 10% required admission to a psychiatric hospital. The successes and obstacles will be shared.

Literature References

1. Liang L, Liu T, Ollier W, Peng Y, Lu Y, Che C. Identifying New Risk Associations Between Chronic Physical Illness and Mental Health Disorders in China: Machine Learning Approach to a Retrospective Population Analysis. JMIR AI. 2025 Jun 30;4:e72599.