It is well known that work of general paediatricians across our nation is increasingly surrounding the diagnosis, assessment and treatment of neurobehavioral challenges that are faced by neurodivergent children.
As a general paediatrician working primarily in this sector, I acknowledge challenges clinicians face everyday in having to manage psychotropic medications and polypharmacy combinations of these.
The interplay of medication with patient's individual neruotype, their co morbidities, their environment and other medications that child takes is very delicate and requires a great deal of deliberation and monitoring on part of the clinician.
I have devised some evidence based and practical ways to examine a given scenario and provide a reasonable medication plan according to available evidence.
I have also learned what not to do along the way and some of these observations could become basis of new research.
My presentation primarily will go through the case scenarios and suitable medication options along with explanation around why these are recommended.
The medication discussion will be focusing on children's well-being as the core value not focused simply on diagnosis.
Aim is to then encourage further conversations along this path and hopefully some day soon lead to future detailed guidelines for medication planning in kids with ADHD or challenging behaviours that are more focused on children's neurodiversity variants not based on available knowledge of medications alone.