When a teen is suffering from complex PTSD or with severe symptoms that are getting in the way of functioning at home, school, or work, intensive inpatient treatment might be needed. This may be especially true with repeated experiences of trauma, such as abuse. In this case, the psychological picture is much different.
Full Answer
When is inpatient psychiatric treatment appropriate for children and adolescents?
The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry supports the use of inpatient psychiatric treatment in a hospital setting when the psychiatric needs of a child or adolescent, as assessed by a properly qualified psychiatrist, warrant such treatment and when the treatment provided is of high quality.
What to do if your teen is in inpatient psychiatric care?
Your teen was placed in inpatient psychiatric care because she could not cope with the outside world. Guarantee her success with the tools she learned in residential care by keeping her choices to a minimum and allowing her to build on her successes. Keep providing support. Make sure you keep her medication available.
When does an adolescent need intensive monitored treatment for SMI?
In certain circumstances, adolescents with serious behavioral health problems or SMI may require intensive monitored treatment that is outside the scope of outpatient or community-based care. Involuntary commitment involves a recommendation from a family member, friend, law enforcement, or community mental health or emergency hospital.
What information should parents be given about inpatient treatment?
Prior to admission, parents should receive an explanation of why inpatient treatment is being recommended, what benefits may be expected from it, and what, if any, appropriate alternative treatment options are available.
What is a qualified psychiatrist?
How long does it take to get a psychiatrist to confirm a case?
How old do you have to be to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital?
What are the requirements for psychiatric disorders?
What should parents know before admission?
Is hospitalization one phase?
Should a child participate in the decision for admission?
See more
About this website
Inpatient psychiatric treatment of children and adolescents: a review ...
All outcome studies of child and adolescent residential treatment and inpatient psychiatric hospitalization reported in the literature from 1975 to the present were examined. A set of statistical procedures was developed to integrate the findings of the 34 studies, which provided a weighted predicti …
Treatment for Teen Depression: The Sooner the Better
If you suspect your teen has depression, one of the most important things to understand is that if they have clinical depression, evidence shows that when it goes untreated, clinical depression rarely resolves on its own. What most often happens is that overt, symptoms become worse, and the condition becomes more disruptive.
Teenage Depression: What are the Signs and Symptoms?
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) is responsible for the official name for depression we mention above: major depressive disorder (MDD). The DSM-V calls MDD “…an overwhelming feeling of sadness, isolation, and despair that last two weeks or longer at a time.”
Teen Depression Can Be Mild, Moderate, or Severe
The three levels of depression are defined by the intensity of the symptoms, the duration of the symptoms, and how much disruption the symptoms cause. Within a diagnosis of major depressive disorder (MDD), clinicians identify the following three levels of disruption/severity:
Inpatient Treatment for Teen Depression
The residential level of care is most often recommended for teens with severe depression.
The Benefits of Inpatient Treatment for Teen Depression
Whether your teen receives psychiatric inpatient treatment or treatment at a residential treatment center for their depression, the goal of treatment is for them to reclaim power and agency in their lives. Depression, like many mental health disorders, can take over their lives and make them feel hopeless.
Finding Help: Resources
If you’re seeking inpatient depression treatment for your teen, please navigate to our page How to Find the Best Treatment Programs for Teens and download our helpful handbook, A Parent’s Guide to Mental Health Treatment for Teens.
Ready to Get Help for Your Child?
Evolve offers CARF and Joint Commission accredited treatment for teens with mental health disorders and/or substance abuse. Your child will receive the highest caliber of care in our comfortable, home-like residential treatment centers.
What is an IOP for teens?
A child or adolescent with a mental health disorder who has received treatment at one of the less immersive levels of care – IOP or PHP for instance – may need a more immersive level of care, such as a residential program for teens (RTC), or inpatient treatment for teens.
How long does PHP treatment take?
In an IOP program, teens or children receive treatment 3-5 days a week for around three hours per day.
How many hours of treatment does an IOP program take?
In an IOP program, teens or children receive treatment 3-5 days a week for around three hours per day. During a PHP program, teens or children receive treatment five days a week for around 5-6 hours per day. In both IOP and PHP programs, children and teens live at home while receiving treatment.
What is the level of acuity?
1. The level of severity of the disorder. You may also find this called the level of acuity, where acuity means how immediately dangerous/serious/disruptive the disorder is at the time of assessment/diagnosis. Most mental health/behavioral/addiction disorders have three levels of severity/acuity: mild, moderate, and severe. ...
What are the three levels of mental health?
Most mental health/behavioral/addiction disorders have three levels of severity/acuity: mild, moderate, and severe. As a rule of thumb, the higher the severity or level of acuity, the more intensive/immersive level of treatment a child or teenager needs. 2. Treatment history. A child or adolescent with a mental health disorder who has received ...
What age do mental illnesses appear?
All of the following types of mental illness may appear before the age of 18. This means that if your adolescent child is diagnosed with any of these disorders, they fall within an age of onset that is within the typical range: Anxiety disorders. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) Behavioral disorders.
What is mental health disorder?
A mental health disorder – a category that includes behavioral disorders and addiction – follows its own trajectory and is influenced by a variety of factors. Childhood trauma, a family history of mental illness or addiction, major life changes, the death of a loved one, the emotional challenges associated with public health crises, ...
What is a qualified psychiatrist?
A "qualified psychiatrist" is a fully trained child and adolescent psychiatrist. For patients 14 years of age and older, a general psychiatrist with documented specialized training, supervised experience and demonstrated competence in work with adolescents, may be considered qualified. Recognizing that inpatient hospital treatment may have both ...
How long does it take to get a psychiatrist to confirm a case?
In every case the admitting decision must be confirmed within twenty-four hours of admission on the basis of a personal examination by a qualified psychiatrist. Inpatient treatment should be conducted in a facility approved by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations ...
How old do you have to be to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital?
The decision to admit a child or adolescent younger than 16 years of age to a psychiatric hospital should be made by a qualified psychiatrist as defined in I.A., unless there is no such qualified psychiatrist available, in which case a general psychiatrist is required.
What are the requirements for psychiatric disorders?
Among many others, these guidelines include as requirements: The psychiatric disorder must be of such severity as to cause significant impairment of daily functioning in at least two important areas of the child and adolescent's life such as school performance, social interactions, or family relationships.
What should parents know before admission?
Before admission, parents should also be fully informed of their financial obligations for treatment and how financial issues may impact the length of their child's hospitalization.
Is hospitalization one phase?
They should understand that hospitalization will be one phase in the treatment process and that their active involvement in the treatment is expected to continue. The Academy fully supports external review of admission and treatment decisions to ensure clinical appropriateness, evaluation of length of stay and quality of care, ...
Should a child participate in the decision for admission?
The child or adolescent should be encourage to participate voluntarily in the decision for admission, in the process of ongoing treatment, and in discharge planning. Every effort should be made to keep parents as fully informed participants through the course of a child or adolescent's hospitalization. Prior to admission, parents should receive an ...
Inpatient Treatment and Residential Treatment: Similarities and Differences
We’ll talk about the similarities first. In both types of inpatient treatment for depression, teens:
Inpatient Treatment for Teen Depression: Summary
Inpatient treatment – whether residential or psychiatric hospitalization – is reserved for teens with severe depression characterized by symptoms that are either debilitating, create a safety risk, or both. Psychiatric hospitalization is for the most extreme cases when a teen needs time under close supervision to become safe and stable.
Ready to Get Help for Your Child?
Evolve offers CARF and Joint Commission accredited treatment for teens with mental health disorders and/or substance abuse. Your child will receive the highest caliber of care in our comfortable, home-like residential treatment centers.
What kind of therapists are on the inpatient floor?
Your therapist will tell you that a team of professionals on the inpatient floor will likely include psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, nurses, nutritionists, recreational therapists, music and art therapists —and if you're a child or teenager, school teachers and pediatricians too.
What is the goal of an inpatient treatment program?
The goal of the inpatient program is to decrease the intensity of depression, reduce the risk for suicide, improve coping skills, adjust medication, or incorporate other treatments.
What to pack for an inpatient stay?
If your inpatient stay is planned, you can pack a bag of comfortable clothing ahead of time, but avoid belts, strings, shoelaces, and other potentially self-harming accessories. Another good thing is to make a list of all the medications you take, as well as all the professionals who work with you.
What is an inpatient unit?
The inpatient unit looks more like a college dorm than a hospital floor. The unit generally has single or double rooms for patients and group/individual therapy rooms, as well as common areas for eating and relaxing—and offices for staff and clinicians.
Why is depression not a result of laziness?
Or poor parenting, if your child needs inpatient care. Suicidal thinking doesn’t happen because you're selfish. Or aren't smart enough to know how to fix things in life.
How long does a child stay in a hospital?
For children and teenagers, stays are typically about eight days, but that, too, can be shorter or longer. Treatment will be unique to your needs, so don't use your time spent inpatient as a measurement of success or failure.
What is a secured environment?
It is a secured environment, arranged to keep patients safe and manage the floor with continuity. When you are in a severe crisis with depression, your therapist may call ahead to the hospital to help with admission. He or she may inquire if a bed is available and give a cursory overview to the admitting caseworker.
Why did my teen go to psychiatric care?
Your teen was placed in inpatient psychiatric care because she could not cope with the outside world.
How often are teen psychiatric patients scheduled?
Clients are scheduled nearly every minute of every day from the time they wake up until they go to bed at night. When she lived in residential care, my daughter was allowed 20 minutes of free time just before bed provided that she’d followed all the rules all day long. This time could be used to write letters home, read, or simply chill-out on her bed. Other than that, every minute was regulated.
Can a large school be intimidating?
Large schools can be very intimidating for a student just coming out of a teen inpatient psychiatric care facility. Talk to your district about other options. Most Special Education Learning Plan Areas (SELPA’s) in the country offer schools for kids with emotional difficulties.
Can you leave constraints of structure?
Leaving the Constraints of Structure Can Be Disruptive. Just as you wouldn’t completely take off the training wheels as soon as your child learns to balance on a two-wheel bike, so, too, you won’t want to take away a supportive structure the second your child is well enough to come home.
What is a qualified psychiatrist?
A "qualified psychiatrist" is a fully trained child and adolescent psychiatrist. For patients 14 years of age and older, a general psychiatrist with documented specialized training, supervised experience and demonstrated competence in work with adolescents, may be considered qualified. Recognizing that inpatient hospital treatment may have both ...
How long does it take to get a psychiatrist to confirm a case?
In every case the admitting decision must be confirmed within twenty-four hours of admission on the basis of a personal examination by a qualified psychiatrist. Inpatient treatment should be conducted in a facility approved by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations ...
How old do you have to be to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital?
The decision to admit a child or adolescent younger than 16 years of age to a psychiatric hospital should be made by a qualified psychiatrist as defined in I.A., unless there is no such qualified psychiatrist available, in which case a general psychiatrist is required.
What are the requirements for psychiatric disorders?
Among many others, these guidelines include as requirements: The psychiatric disorder must be of such severity as to cause significant impairment of daily functioning in at least two important areas of the child and adolescent's life such as school performance, social interactions, or family relationships.
What should parents know before admission?
Before admission, parents should also be fully informed of their financial obligations for treatment and how financial issues may impact the length of their child's hospitalization.
Is hospitalization one phase?
They should understand that hospitalization will be one phase in the treatment process and that their active involvement in the treatment is expected to continue. The Academy fully supports external review of admission and treatment decisions to ensure clinical appropriateness, evaluation of length of stay and quality of care, ...
Should a child participate in the decision for admission?
The child or adolescent should be encourage to participate voluntarily in the decision for admission, in the process of ongoing treatment, and in discharge planning. Every effort should be made to keep parents as fully informed participants through the course of a child or adolescent's hospitalization. Prior to admission, parents should receive an ...
