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Three Clinical Pearls for Evaluating and Treating ADHD
Dr. Elise Fallucco chats with Dr. James Waxmonsky (Chair of Child Psychiatry at Penn State) about practical strategies to evaluate and treat children and teens with ADHD.
Clinical Pearl #1 - Ask Patients about their biggest Challenge and define their Goals, Set Relevant Finish Lines
- Dr. Waxmonsky emphasizes starting with family- and patient-defined functional goals rather than symptom scores,
- Keep in Mind: stimulant sensations like alertness or “academic confidence” can fade with physiologic tolerance and may not reflect real-world improvement.
Clinical Pearl #2 - Ask about the hardest time of the day
- Ask about the family WHEN is the hardest time-of-day and WHAT is the specific problem (e.g., meds may help careless errors and pacing more than organization).
Clinical Pearl #3 Ask about Drift Time
- He also recommends measuring “drift time” by asking how many minutes of a class period the student is on task
00:00 73. 3 ADHD Tips with Dr. James Waxmonsky
01:00 TIP #1 - Ask Patients about their biggest Challenge and define their Goals, Set Relevant Finish Lines
03:07 Measuring Evidence of Real Focus and Motivation
06:22 TIP#2 - Ask about the hardest time of the day
08:37 Need Branded Concerta not generic
10:01 TIP#3 Ask about Drift Time
13:48 Recap of Clinical Pearls
About our Guest: Dr. James Waxmonsky
Professor, Vice Chair for Children's Services and University Chair in Child Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health
Penn State Neuroscience Institute
Check out our website PsychEd4Peds.com for more resources!
Follow us on Instagram @psyched4peds
Check out our NEW CME Audio-based, on-demand CME Course online at:
Pediatric Mental Health CME Toolkit - Cracking the ADHD Code: Essentials for Pediatric Clinicians.
https://ce.nemours.org/content/podcast-series-cracking-adhd-code-essential-skills-pediatric-clinicians#group-tabs-node-course-default1
