From the PAL Psychiatrist
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Twin Cities Live: How parents can manage stress during the Covid-19 Pandemic
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PAL Psychiatrist: Josh Stein, MD
Parents are taking on new roles as we social distance and schools are closed. This can be joyful but also overwhelming, exhausting and confusing at times. Parents now find themselves acting as parents, chefs, employees, teachers, and more. Adding Therapist to that list might be more than they can handle.
Many families, children and parents are feeling hopeless, helpless and worthless. Children may be more irritable, aggressive, somatic or despondent. Mental Health resources and
PrairieCare
remain open, essential and readily available. The relaxation of telehealth requirements allows rapid assessments and transitions to treatment from the comfort of your home.
Some beneficial suggestions from the American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry:
- Try and establish a regular routine and schedule at home. Kids are reassured by structure and predictability.
- Give kids choices, where there are choices. You may not be able to visit friends or go to the movies, but you can pick which game to play or program to watch.
- Help kids keep in touch with friends and family members by phone, e-mail, FaceTime, Zoom, Skype, etc.
- If kids have questions about COVID-19 or about why you’re sheltering in place, answer them honestly, using words and concepts they can understand.
- Help children find accurate and up to date information. Print out Fact Sheets from the CDC, WHO or your local health authority.
- Don’t let children watch too much television with frightening images. The repetition of such scenes can be disturbing and confusing.
- Encourage kids to choose something new to learn about. It could be a game, a craft or a challenging book
- Make sure kids stay physically active. If you’re in a rural area, take a walk outside (observing social distancing guidelines). If you’re in a more urban setting, help your child develop and maintain a regular in-home exercise routine.
- Let kids participate in menu planning and meal preparation. Try and cook or bake something new.
- Be flexible…and patient. Sheltering in place may seem fun for the first few days, but the novelty quickly wears off. Your kids may not always feel like talking or doing what you’re doing.
- Be honest. Acknowledge that this is a difficult time for everyone. It’s normal to feel tense and anxious under such trying and unusual circumstances.
- Give kids space. Everyone needs some private “down time”.
- Let little things go. Try not to overreact when things break, take too long or don’t go quite as expected.
- Make future plans. Talk about and research things to do and places to go after the pandemic ends.
If parents have questions on how to support their kids, call PAL!
855-431-6468
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Pediatric Psychiatric Med Management
& Trauma Care Trainings
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"I feel more confident prescribing antidepressants, and calling the PAL with complex patients." - pediatrician
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The PAL team and a Nationally Certified Trauma Therapist provide FREE and CME-approved trainings for primary care providers and healthcare professionals that are focused on pediatric mental health assessment and treatment.
PAL will present from 8am-12pm:
- Overview of the Psychiatric Consultation Service and the importance of early identification of mental illness
- Psychopharmacology (eg. Stimulants, SSRI's, SGA's, and Mood Stabilizers)
- Metabolic Monitoring
- Pharmacogenomics testing
- Community Resources, Fast-TrackerMN.org, and collaborative care models
Trauma Care therapist and trainer will present from 1-5pm:
- Psychotherapeutic modalities with a particular focus on evidence-based practices
- Appropriate screening, referral and treatment of traumatic stress in children and youth
- Ensuring adequate assessment and the appropriate diagnosis and treatment of ADHD in children and youth (e.g., differential diagnosis, alternatives to pharmaceutical treatments, etc.)
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Adam Klapperich, DO
Dr. Klapperich is a board certified child/adolescent and adult psychiatrist. He joined PrairieCare Medical Group in Edina in 2012. He has since worked in inpatient, partial hospitalization, and outpatient settings at PrairieCare. Dr. Klapperich attended the University of South Dakota before graduating from the Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine. He completed psychiatric residency and child and adolescent psychiatric fellowship training at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Klapperich works with children and adolescents in the newly opened Maplewood location.
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Joshua Stein, MD
Dr. Stein is the clinical director and an attending clinician at the Brooklyn Park Partial Hospital Program (PHP) and operates a clinic out of the Brooklyn Park Medical Office Building. The clinic is used as a bridge for patient's leaving PHP until they can see their outpatient provider. The focus for care is not just on immediate obstacles and gains, but improving long term trajectory as well. As the president of the Minnesota Society for Child Adolescent Psychiatry he focuses on local and national advocacy for children's mental health with a goal to increase access to quality care.
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Fast-Tracker is Minnesota's free, easy-to-use tool designed to connect people with resources and services.
They connect individuals, families, mental health and substance use disorder providers, physicians, care coordinators, and others with a real-time, searchable directory of mental health and substance use disorder resources and their availability within Minnesota.
For more information, call Fast-Tracker 651-426-6347 or visit their website:
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Mental Health Resources & Treatment Protocols for Primary Care
Child and adolescent psychiatric treatment protocols are available on our website under the Training & Education tab. The treatment protocols are specifically for medical providers, and the fact sheets are intended for caregivers/families.
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