The Roadmap Project: Improving the Emotional Health of Children and Adolescents with Chronic Conditions and Their Families

Leader(s)

• 

  Carole Lannon, MD MPH

  Professor of Pediatrics; Senior Quality Advisor, Am Bd of Pediatrics
  Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
  Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States

Co-Leader(s)

• 

  Lori Crosby, PsyD (she/her/hers)

  Professor
  Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
  Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
• 

  Erica Sood, PhD (she/her/hers)

  Pediatric Psychologist
  Nemours Children's Health
  Wilmington, Delaware, United States
• 

  Jill Plevinsky, PhD (she/her/hers)

  Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology/Pediatric Psychologist
  University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine/Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Workshop

Description: Navigating a chronic condition as a child, adolescent, or family member is challenging, and can cause stress, altered coping, and lasting impacts on both child and family emotional health. Yet 65% of pediatricians report needing training in recognizing and treating mental health problems. Developed for the American Board of Pediatrics’ strategic initiative on mental health, the Roadmap Project aims to improve the emotional health of children with chronic conditions and their families. It was co-produced with patients, families, clinicians, and psychologists. Roadmap used a 16-month pilot Learning Collaborative with 11 teams from 9 children’s hospitals to test resources, develop tools, and refine implementation strategies. Hospital settings included outpatient, inpatient, and training programs. Based on lessons learned, the Roadmap Project developed: 1) a checklist to help clinical teams assess readiness and identify priorities for addressing emotional health; 2) Maintenance of Certification Part 2 and Part 4 activities; 3) teaching videos with patients and clinicians; 4) a six-month webinar series with 15 cardiology teams to test an educational approach using the MOC platform; 5) a template for identifying support resources; 6) billing strategies document, and 7) a website www.roadmapforemotionalhealth.org. Co-presenters and facilitators for this interactive workshop include a patient, pediatrician, and psychologists. Attendees will use the Readiness Checklist to identify needs in their clinical settings. Participants will learn measurable and actionable strategies for addressing emotional health, including having conversations about emotional health, connecting families with resources, addressing bias and ensuring equitable care, engaging their clinical team, and monitoring practice change.