By reviewing a computer based screening on patient alcohol use, doctors can help reduce underage drinking according to a new study
Can a doctor really persuade a teenager not to use alcohol or drugs with a two or three minute intervention? The answer is “yes,” according to a new study in the journal Pediatrics.
“In just a few minutes we can make a significant impact in reducing teenage alcohol use,” says Harris. “By streamlining the alcohol screening process for clinicians and patients alike we can make the process easier and more efficient for everyone, which will yield more positive results.”
Teens in Harris’s study completed a five-minute computer-based survey, known as the CRAFFT, which asks six simple questions about alcohol and drug use. After the screening users are assigned a “score” and risk level based on their answers. They’re then directed to 10 illustrated pages of stories and science-based evidence about the serious health effects of alcohol and drug use. Full story »
Dr. Claire McCarthy is a primary care physician and the Medical Communications Editor at Children’s Hospital Boston. Along with her blogs here on Thriving, you can find her at the Huffington Post and Boston.com. Follow her on Twitter @drClaire.
by Childrens Hospital Boston staff on March 15, 2012
In the following blog, a young woman shares what it’s like to live with endometriosis, a painful condition that occurs when tissue similar to the inside lining of the uterus is found outside of its normal location.
I remember when I first started having pain. I was 14 years old and told my mom about a constant pain in my side. She brushed off my comment and gave me some Advil thinking it would help. After a while the pain just never subsided so I told her I needed to see the doctor. After a number of tests, hospitalizations, surgery, and a year of searching for “what was wrong”, it was confirmed that I had endometriosis.
Even though the process of figuring out “what was wrong” had concluded, my pain was still present. It did subside a bit after going on birth control pills and other pain alleviating remedies, but every now and then there would be moments of unbearable pain. My parents and friends would comment and say things to me like “You must be feeling so much better, or “I’m so glad you’re in less pain, the surgery and medicine really must have been what you needed”. Little did they know that endo is not like a cold that goes away after a few days. Full story »
Visiting a hospital can be overwhelming for anyone, but for kids it can be downright scary. The range of fears will vary from child to child depending on their age, development, personality and prior hospital experience. As parents it’s our goal to help calm our children and prepare them for experiences that might be frightening, but when it comes to preparing your little one for a hospital stay that may seem easier said than done.
Fortunately the staff at Children’s Hospital Boston has seen it all and is here to help children (and their parents) know just what to expect if they’re coming to Children’s. Mary O’Malley, NP, MSN, and Certified Child Life Specialist Hayley Sorensen, MS, CCLS, have extensive experience working with children in the hospital’s Preoperative Clinic, and offer these tips for families who may be preparing a child for a hospital stay.
1. Be honest
According Sorensen, most children will be looking for answers to three W questions when they find out they’re going to a hospital for an extended visit. “The concern for children being hospitalized are usually, ‘Who is going to be with me, what will the doctors do and will it hurt?’” she says.
The single most important thing parents can do to help alleviate any fears is to have an open and honest dialogue with their children. Kids are observant and intuitive and they know when information is being kept from them, which can cause anxiety.
By discussing the upcoming hospitalization in age appropriate ways, you can quiet a lot of the fears your child may be worried about. “Children need to be prepared,” O’Malley says. “Nothing in real-life is as scary as their imagination is and they need to be reassured of that.” Full story »
The journal Pediatrics released two studies this week that focused on the mental and physical wellbeing of children who don’t conform to typical gender roles.
The first study, led by Children’s Hospital Boston researcher S. Bryn Austin, ScD, indicates that kids who fail to adapt traditional gender stereotypes as children are at a significantly greater risk for physical, sexual and psychological abuse during childhood. These children are also more likely to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in young adulthood.
The study was funded by the National Institute of Health and compiled data from almost 9,000 young adults. Participants were asked to recall their childhood experiences, including their favorite toys and games growing up. The types of charters they related to as children, which roles they adopted during pretend play and their earliest understanding of masculinity and femininity where all reported on as well. Researchers also asked participants to disclose information about any physical, sexual or emotional abuse they experienced at the hands of parents, other adults or older children. Finally, participants were screened for PSTD. Full story »
For decades, teenagers have gotten a pretty bad rap from the generations that came before them. The clothes, hairstyles and music may change, but the age-old notion of teenagers being wilder than ever before predates anyone old enough to have the thought. Complaining about wayward teens may be a parental cliché, but that’s only because it’s true, right?
Not so fast parents: According to a new study at the University of Michigan, today’s kids are actually a little more conservative than many of you were at their age. Full story »
Compared to 30 years ago, today’s teenagers are drinking and smoking less. If you’ve got a teenager those kinds of stats are encouraging news, but unfortunately it’s too early to let your guard down completely. According to a new study more kids are using marijuana than before and start smoking at a younger age. The cause of the spike is still unclear, but John R. Knight, MD, director of Children’s Hospital Boston’s Center for Adolescent Substance Abuse Research(CeASAR), says mixed messages about pot’s dangers are likely to play a role.
Have you found drugs in your child’s room and are unsure what to do? Here’s more advice from Dr. Knight.
To learn more about how marijuana’s softening reputation could impact your kids, read this interview with Dr. Knight. If you are concerned about your child’s substance use, contact a member of Dr. Knight’s team for help in scheduling an appointment.
Boston Magazine recently released its 2011 Top Doc list, made up of the best 650 physicians in the Hub. Seeing as Boston is home to some of the greatest medical minds on the planet, the list reads like a prestigious who’s-who roster of talent; a medical dream team spanning every aspect of treatment, from surgery to research and innovation.
Broken into 57 different specialties, doctors included on the list are voted for by fellow medical professionals, meaning that the Top Docs have not only gained the respect of the public and media, but of their peers as well.
Children’s Hospital Boston is proud to announce that over 10 percent of the entire list was made up of our staff, many of whom will be familiar to Thriving readers.
In 2004 Children’s Chief of Cardiac Surgery,Pedro del Nido, MD, was the first person to use the da Vinci surgical robot to fix a defect in a child’s heart, using child-sized tools of his own design. Read about another family whose child was also saved by Dr. del Nido’s surgical expertise and steady hands.
Do you have a Children's Hospital Boston story you'd like heard? By sharing your Children's story you can be a great source of inspiration and encouragement to families who are going through similar situations. And it’s a great way to find support by connecting with others. Share your story today »
I remember when I first started having pain. I was 14 years old and told my mom about a constant pain in my side. She brushed off my comment and gave me some Advil thinking it would help. After a while the pain just never subsided so I told her I needed to see the doctor. After a number of tests, hospitalizations, surgery, and a year of searching for “what was wrong”, it was confirmed that I had 
Visiting a hospital can be overwhelming for anyone, but for kids it can be downright scary. The range of fears will vary from child to child depending on their age, development, personality and prior hospital experience. As parents it’s our goal to help calm our children and prepare them for experiences that might be frightening, but when it comes to preparing your little one for a hospital stay that may seem easier said than done.
The journal Pediatrics released two studies this week that focused on the mental and physical wellbeing of children who don’t conform to typical gender roles.
