Journal of pediatric psychology
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Review
Mental health aspects of emergency medical services for children: summary of a consensus conference.
To address the mental health needs of children involved in emergency medical services (EMS). ⋯ Ecological changes in emergency departments, such as linkages to mental health follow-up services, training of EMS providers and mental health professionals, and focused research that provides an empirical basis for practice, are necessary components for improving current standards of health care.
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To evaluate the reliability and validity of a new observational measure of children's procedure-related distress behaviors, the Brief Behavioral Distress Scale (BBDS), to provide clinicians with an efficient, economical alternative measure that does not depend on continuous interval coding. ⋯ Based on the findings reported, the BBDS is a reliable and valid measure of children's procedure-related distress with functional utility in both research and clinical settings.