Responding to the Voice of the Troubled Infant From Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services
| Monday, March 24, 2025 |
| 1:30 PM - 2:00 PM |
| Ballroom 1 |
Overview
Associate Professor Campbell Paul, Consultant Infant, Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, Royal Children’s Hospital and Royal Women’s Hospital Melbourne, M CRI and the University of Melbourne
Presenter
Assoc Prof Campbell Paul
Consultant Infant, Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist
Royal Children’s Hospital and Royal Women’s Hospital Melbourne, M CRI and the University of Melbourne
Responding to the Voice of the Troubled Infant From Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services
Abstract
An infant’s life from birth to preschool may represent just 1/25th of their lifespan, but it is this stage of life that holds the most crucial time for healthy development, and the greatest risk for longer term developmental disorders and mental ill-health. Infants exposed to psychological and physical trauma, or the powerful trauma of emotionally unavailable carers, may suffer from a range of mental health disorders from regulatory problems such as disorders of sleep, feeding, depression, anxiety, irritability, traumatic stress disorders and disorders of attachment. (DC 0 to 5, 2016) Although very young children may have few spoken words, they have a profound capacity for intersubjectivity; for reading the behaviour, intentions and emotions of their important carers. Infant child and adolescent mental health services have a responsibility to provide diagnostic and therapeutic interventions for our most vulnerable citizens. This means listening to the voice of the distressed infant, a voice which may seem mute. iCAMH clinicians must work directly with the infant, their parents collaborating with agencies from child health and development, childcare and preschool through to social and protective services. Our youngest deserve no less.
Three Key Learnings:
1. Newborns, infants and preschoolers have capacity for intersubjectivity, reading the thoughts and intentions of others. We be attuned to the voice of the infant
2. Absence of thoughtful reflective care may represent a profound trauma for a very young child
3. iCAMH services must develop training for their staff to meet the mental health needs of the 0 to 5 year old age group, as we do for 6 to 18-year-olds.
Three Key Learnings:
1. Newborns, infants and preschoolers have capacity for intersubjectivity, reading the thoughts and intentions of others. We be attuned to the voice of the infant
2. Absence of thoughtful reflective care may represent a profound trauma for a very young child
3. iCAMH services must develop training for their staff to meet the mental health needs of the 0 to 5 year old age group, as we do for 6 to 18-year-olds.
Biography
Campbell Paul is a Consultant Psychiatrist at the Royal Children’s and Women’s Hospitals Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, and Murdoch Children’s Research Institute. He and colleagues established the University of Melbourne postgraduate courses in infant mental health in 1996 and has delivered many trainings in infant mental health.
He has a special interest in the inner world of infant, and infant-parent psychotherapy. He is a founding member of the Australian Association for Infant Mental Health, Newborn Behaviour Observation Australasia and Past President of the World Association for Infant Mental Health. He helped establish Koori Kids Mental Health Network Victoria, and the RCH Gender Service.
