Colic: Assessment, Diagnosis and Treatment
Offered by the Brown Center for the Study of Children at Risk, The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Women & Infants Hospital, and Brown University Office of Continuing Education
Instructor(s): Jean Twomey and Pam High
Location: Brown University
Dates: June 22-26, 2009
Meeting Times: 1:00-4:00pm
Fee: $800
Application Due Date: May 29, 2009
Description: This course will examine infant colic from a multidisciplinary perspective that encompasses pediatric, psychological, and relationship issues. We will draw on our experiences from the Infant Behavior, Cry, and Sleep Clinic (“colic clinic”) to discuss our innovative, family-centered approach to treating colic. The colic clinic was established to provide collaborative pediatric and psychological treatment to address infants’ needs, alleviate parental stress, and promote healthy parent-infant relationships.
Who should attend: Clinicians who work with parent-infant issues, Infant Mental Health trainees
Course Objectives: At the completion of the course participants will be able to:
- Discuss the etiology of infant colic from multiple perspectives.
- Assess causes that are contributing to infant’s inconsolable crying.
- Discuss the impact inconsolable infant crying can have on parental mental health, the parent-infant relationship, and family functioning.
- Present a multidisciplinary clinical service that treats infant cry and sleep problems from a family-centered perspective.
- Analyze strategies to treat infant colic and sleep issues.
Teaching strategies: Lectures, Discussion sessions
Evaluation: Participation in the seminar discussions
Instructor Bio(s): Jean Twomey, MSW, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry & Human Behavior and Pediatrics (Research) at Brown University, Alpert Medical School. Her research interests include parenting abilities of substance-using women, developmental outcomes of substance-exposed infants with child welfare involvement, long-term outcomes of families who participated in the RI Family Treatment Drug Court, and the impact of infant behavioral difficulties on parental mental health and family functioning. She is a child and family therapist who provides clinical services at the Brown Center for the Study of Children in the Infant Behavior, Cry and Sleep Clinic, and Behavior and Development Clinic. Her clinical interests include disorders of infancy and early childhood, colic, parent-infant relationships, and the role of fathers in families affected by perinatal substance use.
Dr. Pamela High, MD is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Pediatrics. She is Director of the Division of Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics (DBP) in the Department of Pediatrics and serves as Program Director for fellowship and residency training in Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. In addition, she directs the Infant Cry, Behavior and Sleep Program at the Center and co-directs the Hasbro Partial Hospital Program. Dr. High’s interests are medical education in developmental and behavioral pediatrics with a focus on early childhood issues and interdisciplinary collaboration. Her clinical and research interests include infant behavioral issues such as colic, sleep problems and feeding problems, anticipatory guidance including literacy promotion in primary care, and the interrelationship of medical and psychological problems in childhood.