PYMEAC-Engagement and Assessment of Common Mental Health Problems in Children and Young People

Module Provider: Psychology
Number of credits: 20 [10 ECTS credits]
Level:7
Terms in which taught: Autumn / Spring term module
Pre-requisites:
Non-modular pre-requisites: Co-requisites: PYMFPC and PYMLIC. In addition, for EMHP students, PYMWES, PYMPES and PYMIES must be passed. For CWP students, PYMWCS, PYMPCS and PYMICS must be passed..
Co-requisites:
Modules excluded:
Current from: 2023/4

Module Convenor: Miss Anjali Chandar
Email: a.m.chandar@reading.ac.uk

Type of module:

Summary module description:

Children’s Wellbeing Practitioners (CWPs) and Education Mental Health Practitioners (EMHPs) assess and support children and young people (CYP) with common mental health problems such as anxiety and depression. To do so they must be able to undertake a robust client-centred assessment, which reflects a shared understanding of the CYP’s current difficulties and their goals, and informs how decisions are made with the family about the best next steps. This module provides teaching on the incidence, prevalence and presentation of common mental health problems experienced by CYP, and training in conducting assessment. It includes training in client-centred information-gathering, risk assessment, use of standardised measures, information-giving and shared decision-making. In all these areas of assessment, students need to be able to engage children, young people and their carers, and establish an appropriate relationship whilst gathering information in a collaborative manner.

Aims:

Students will develop knowledge of mental health disorders affecting CYP, and the evidence-based therapeutic options available, and be able to communicate this knowledge in a clear and unambiguous way so that informed treatment choices can be made. In addition, they will develop knowledge of behaviour change models and how these can inform choice of goals and interventions. This module will, therefore, equip students with a good understanding of the incidence, prevalence and presentation of common mental health problems in CYP, and evidenced-based treatment choices. Skills teaching will develop students’ core ‘common factors’ competencies of active listening, engagement, alliance building, patient-centred information gathering, information giving and shared decision making.

Assessable learning outcomes:

Students must demonstrate

1. Knowledge, understanding and critical awareness of concepts of mental health and mental illness, diagnostic category systems in mental health of children and young people and a range of social, medical and psychological explanatory models.


2. Knowledge of, and competence in applying the principles, purposes and different elements of assessment undertaken with CYP presenting with common mental health problems.


3. Knowledge of, and competence in using ‘common factors’ to engage CYP, gather information, build a therapeutic alliance, manage the emotional content of sessions and grasp the CYP’s perspective or “world view”.


4. Knowledge of, and competence in ‘patient-centred’ information gathering to arrive at a succinct and collaborative definition of the CYP’s main mental health difficulties and the impact this has on their daily lives.


5. Knowledge of, and competence in recognising patterns of symptoms consistent with diagnostic categories of mental disorder from a patient-centred interview and able to assess and recognise any risks to self and others posed by CYPs.


6. Knowledge of, and competence in accurate risk assessment to CYP or others


7. Knowledge of, and competence in the use of standardised routine outcome measures to aid problem recognition and definition, and subsequent decision making


8. Knowledge, understanding and competence in using behaviour change models in identifying intervention goals and choice of appropriate interventions.


9. Knowledge of, and competence in giving evidence-based information about treatment choices and in making shared decisions with CYP.


10. Competence in understanding the CYP’s attitude to a range of evidence-based psychological treatments.


11. Competence in accurate recording of interviews and questionnaire assessments using paper and electronic record keeping systems.

Additional outcomes:

Outline content:

The module will comprise of in-class and online teaching, clinical skills practice/supervised clinical practice, supervision in-service and independent study.

 

Clinical Supervision

 

 

• Each student will have clinical supervision weekly in a group of no more than 6.

 

• Recorded material from training cases should be included at some point during a significant majority of supervision sessions.

 

 

At the end of the course when clinical work has been completed the supervisor will be asked to complete a pro-forma assessment form and indicate whether or not a student has reached a satisfactory level of clinical practice

 

The teaching will be supplemented by an equivalent number of hours of clinical practice in the workplace under supervision of an experienced practitioner and supervisor.

Global context:

The content follows a national curriculum.

Brief description of teaching and learning methods:

The aims of this module will be achieved through a series of lectures, seminars, discussion groups, guided reading, self-practice/self-reflection activities, problem-based learning tasks, and independent study. Skills based competencies will be learnt through a combination of clinical simulation in small groups working intensively under close supervision with peer and tutor feedback. In addition, they will be supplemented by e-learning material and experience of assessment and treatment of cl ients within the workplace (under close supervision in the workplace). Teaching will be provided by course tutors, with some national and international experts where appropriate. 

 

Contact hours:







•  To include approximately 10 days in total to be split between in-class and online teaching, clinical simulation, and university-directed learning days to be spent undertaking practice-based learning and e-learning activities. These will last from 9.30 to 4.30 pm unless otherwise stated. Teaching days comprise of 50% clinical skills practice on average. In addition, teaching will be supplemented by experience of assessment and treatment of clients within the workplace (supervised in the workplace). 

 

Teaching contact hours:

The total minimum teaching contact hours (including clinical skills workshops) across all modules for the CWP and EMHP courses is 368 hours (64 taught days; including university-directed learning days). 

Contact hours:

	Autumn	Spring	Summer
Lectures	51.75	5.75
Guided independent study:	98.25	44.25
Total hours by term	150	50	0
Total hours for module	200

Summative Assessment Methods:

Method	Percentage
Written assignment including essay	50
Practical skills assessment	50

Summative assessment- Examinations:

Summative assessment- Coursework and in-class tests:

There are two parts to this assessment.

 

1. ?A practical skills assessment where students are required to submit a recording of a clinical session to demonstrate skills in engagement, assessment, information giving and shared decision making. The client must be a different presentation to the recording submitted in PYMLIC (e.g. if a parenting client is submitted for PYMEAC, a behavioural treatment of anxiety or low mood with an adolescent must be submitted for PYMLIC).


2. A written assignment on their work with the client in the practical skills assessment above (assessment 1) to include reflection on their clinical skills in the session.

 

These 2 assessments are equally weighted.

.

Formative assessment methods:

Penalties for late submission:

The below information applies to students on taught programmes except those on Postgraduate Flexible programmes. Penalties for late submission, and the associated procedures, which apply to Postgraduate Flexible programmes are specified in the policy 'Penalties for late submission for Postgraduate Flexible programmes', which can be found here: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/cqsd-old-site-documents/penaltiesforlatesubmissionpgflexible.pdf
The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of five working days;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than five working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/cqsd-old-site-documents/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf
You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Assessment requirements for a pass:

A mark of at least 50% (and no auto fails) in the skills-based assessment (assessment number 1).







A mark of at least 50% in the academic based assessment (assessment number 2).



 

Level 7 students will be expected to evidence in-depth understanding of the topic and critical analytic skills in academic assessments.

100% attendance on taught days is expected. The minimum requirement is for 80% live attendance of teaching in each module in order to pass the programme.

If, for any reason, a trainee misses a teaching session, they will be expected to access a video of the missed teaching followed by either a tutorial or a 500 word reflection (as determined by the course team). Topping-up missed teaching in this way is evidenced in the Portfolio assessment which sits within PYMLIC. If attendance falls below 80% for any module it will not be possible to use top-up alone to compensate for missed sessions.

 

Reassessment arrangements:

Students who do not obtain the required pass mark in the assessed work will be given the opportunity to resubmit, on one further occasion, any individual assessment that has been failed. The resit grade cannot exceed 50%.

 

Completion of studies is dependent on employment within a CYPMH service or MHST partnered with University of Reading and ongoing access to a CYP MH appropriate clinical caseload. Students must successfully pass all modules of the training programme. Therefore a student’s studies may be terminated if they are no longer working in a partnership service, no longer have access to an ongoing CYP MH appropriate caseload, or fail coursework at second attempt.

Additional Costs (specified where applicable):

Last updated: 30 March 2023