There are many differences between a child psychiatrist and a child psychologist.  An individual can spend upwards of 12 years in training to be qualified as Child and Adolescent psychiatrist which is a medical specialist qualification. Child and adolescent psychiatrists are holistic in their approach to understanding and treating problems but with a developmental and medical framework. They do this by considering physical, psychological and social perspectives of the child within the context of families, schools and community. Child and adolescent psychiatrists are medically trained for treating psychiatric conditions and integrating all of the information about the child to produce a plan which may include medications, psychological therapy or referral to other providers.

Our focus is patient/child centric- this doesn’t mean that we will just comply with all requests but we will put the interests of children ahead of parents at times when this is required to get the best outcomes for the children.

We maintain high standards of clinical care and judgement in the provision of evidence-based, psychiatric services. If there are differences of opinion within the medical community about best care then these options will be discussed with the family.

We aim to be collaborative and non-judgemental while maintaining strict confidentiality. While at times your doctor will gather information from other sources to ensure that a complete picture of your child’s needs has been considered, this is done with your permission only