Child Health Psychology
Who (services) will we see?
Child Health Psychology are a service for children and young people and their families/carers when you have physical health conditions that are under the care of the hospital.
Managing physical health conditions can be stressful, challenging, worrying and time consuming for children, young people and their families/carers. The Child Health Psychology Team are a specialist service that is here to support children, young people and their families with psychological, emotional and behavioural difficulties that are experienced as a result of physical health conditions or symptoms. We aim to help children, young people and families adjust to their physical health condition and the changes it might bring, and to cope with difficulties along the way.
Some things we might help with include:
- Adjusting to life with a physical health condition
- Coping with worries related to your condition
- Managing strong emotions, such as; sadness, anger or fear
- Coping with feeling different
- Coping with treatments like injections, taking tablets and other medications, blood tests and/or coming to clinic
- Coping with tests, investigations or procedures e.g., going for a scan, blood tests
- Dealing with difficulties in school or with friendships that are related to your condition.
- Managing activity and tiredness related to your condition
- Managing pain
- Managing physical symptoms related to your condition or when you or the medical team don’t understand fully what is causing them.
Our teams are made up of mainly Clinical Psychologists but we also have Assistant Psychologists, Child Health Psychology Practitioners and Administration Support.
Clinical Psychologists are trained to understand how people think, feel and behave. The staff working in this service are experienced in helping young people and their families cope with the psychological aspects of health and illness.
Where are you?
We are based in the main hospitals across North Wales, Glan Clwyd, Wrexham Maelor and Ysbyty Gwynedd. We usually arrange to see you at the hospital but may also see you online or within your community depending on your circumstances or needs.
How do we get to see you?
Your local GP may refer you to see a specialist doctor (paediatrician) based at the hospital or community health centre. This specialist doctor may work with a team of clinicians such as dieticians, physiotherapists and specialist nurses. The specialist doctor or clinician will get to know you and work with you to decide if child health psychology may help you. They will ask us to see you by writing to us, letting us know what they think you need help with. We will look at this and make sure we are the right team to help you, or if we need to get you support from elsewhere.
How can you help me?
Child Health Psychology will talk to you and your family/carers and listen to your story. We may also speak to other people involved in your care with your permission. Together, we will aim to have an understanding of your difficulties and how these impact on your day-to-day life. We will work with you to create a plan that supports you to manage and achieve your goals. We can also work with your wider clinical team and parents/carers in supporting you to achieve your goals.
We offer a range of talking therapies and your local Child Health Psychologist can discuss this with you and together decide what will be helpful to you.
Our service is confidential. This means that it is important for us to keep what you say private. We will let the person who asked us to see you (e.g., your specialist doctor, specialist nurse, physiotherapist etc.) know that we have seen you and how we plan to help you but we don’t usually need to share lots of detail with them. Sometimes it is helpful for us to share information with other people, such as your family, school or other members of your medical team. We will always discuss with you first whether you want us to share any information and who with. The only exception is if we think you or someone else is at risk. In this case, it is our duty of care to keep you safe by passing on this information.
Where do I go? How do I tell you I have arrived?
We will send you a letter that will help you to find us, as we know that hospitals can be difficult to find your way around. When you come to your first appointment, you will let the receptionist know you are there and be directed to a waiting area. The receptionist will let us know you have arrived and we will come and collect you and take you to a clinic room.
Our rooms are designed to make you feel comfortable and safe. We don’t do any physical health checks; we don’t give medication or injections and we don’t read minds. We use the appointment to talk to you and your family/carers. But we may offer some time in the appointment without your family/ carers present if this is appropriate.
Your first appointment may feel like we ask lots of questions because we are trying to learn lots about you. Don’t worry there are no right and wrong answers and we will be talking to your family/ carers too. In the appointment we will listen to you talk, we will ask about problems you have, we will ask about your friends and hobbies and we will talk about both home and school life.
Do I need to bring anything to my appointment?
You don’t need to bring anything with you to your appointment but you can bring something that helps you to feel more comfortable such as a fidget toy or teddy. You can bring your mobile phone if you have one, as there may be times where you might be waiting or we are talking to your parents/carers. But we ask that you put your phone away when asked and take part in the session.
Your parents may wish to bring information about you that we may find helpful such as details of other professionals involved.