Parent Information
What do I need to know about the ACPU?
How do I refer my child to the ACPU?
What happens during an assessment and afterwards?
What RCH MHS publications and brochures are available to me on-line?
What is the Rights Charter?
Useful links to other web sites
What do I need to know about the ACPU?
The Academic Child Psychiatry Unit (ACPU) is a clinical research unit that offers a thorough assessment of young people with various psychiatric and behavioural problems and difficulties. For more information about the functions of the ACPU please also see the sections Services and About ACPU.
How do I refer my child to the ACPU?
If you would like your child to participate in clinical research programs and assessments please see the information below:
Patients of the Royal Children's Hospital, Mental Health Service (RCH MHS)
Your child's current clinician/case manager may make a referral to the ACPU by completing a referral form or by providing a referral letter. You will then be contacted by the ACPU to arrange an apppointment.
You may also contact the ACPU directly to make a referral, however you may wish to discuss this with your child's current case manager as well. If you are making a referral directly please also obtain a referral letter from your doctor, as noted below.
Non RCH MHS patients (ie. private patients and RCH paediatric patients)
Please contact the ACPU on (03) 9345 4666 to make an appointment. Please also obtain a referral letter from your doctor (General Practitioner or Paediatrician). This referral letter should be addressed to Professor Alasdair Vance. If the referral letter was not sent to the ACPU directly by your doctor please bring the referral letter with you on the day of your first appointment.
NOTE: Appointments are bulk billed through Medicare. Please bring your medicare card with you to each appointment.
What happens during an assessment and afterwards?
Standardised assessments will take place over two sessions in the Academic Child Psychiatry Unit which is located on the Ground Floor of the South East Building at the Royal Children's Hospital. Each of these sessions will take approximately a half a day to complete. Both sessions can be completed on the same day. Some parts of the assessment will involve both yourself and your child and other parts will only require your child to be present. There will be a thorough clinical assessment of symptoms from child, parent and teacher perspectives, cognitive ability, educational ability, biological and psychological strengths and weaknesses, parental symptoms associated with managing your child and family functioniong.
For RCH MHS patients, a feedback session to discuss the results will be provided by Professor Vance and/or your child's clinician/case manager. For non RCH MHS patients, a feedback session will be provided by Professor Vance.
All the information collected during these assessment sessions will be fed back to your referring doctor/clinician in the form of a written report summarising the results of the assessment. This report will include key strengths and weaknesses and an ongoing priority treatment plan will be offered. In addition to this your child will be followed up after 3 months and then on an annual basis.
As part of the research functions of the ACPU, this information (with your prior consent) will be collected and kept in number form in our clinical research electronic record.
For additional information please refer to Services and Key Clinics & Standardised Assessments.
What RCH MHS publications, facts sheets and brochures are available to me on-line?
Please click on the link below to view the publications, fact sheets and brochures available on The Royal Children's Hospital Mental Health Service (RCH-MHS) web site.
What is the Rights Charter?
For information about the Charter For Parents And Carers Of Young People Who Use A Child And Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) please see the links below to the RCH-MHS web site.
Useful Links to other Web sites