Increasing Education of ADHD Therapies for Pediatric Nurses Research Paper

Increasing Education of ADHD Therapies for Pediatric Nurses - Research Paper Example The treatment methods largely adopted are based on medication which has been found to have mild to extreme effects on the users. These side effects have endangered the life of the users even though they have had a somewhat commendable effect on the individual in regard to the condition. Personally, I have had a chance of attending to an ADHD patient, a 12 year old child who had been placed with me for adoption. The child was diagnosed with ADHD four years ago and has since been on medication and no other complimentary interventions have been initiated to treat the disorder. Being in this situation has prompted me to delve deeper into finding an alternate solution in the treatment of ADHD. Through sufficient and quality research a workable and efficient means of treating ADHD can be arrived at, one that has minimal effect on the individual. In a bid to accomplish this task, this paper will start with an in depth review of ADHD including existent statistics, medication, effects of medi cation, non-medication therapies and their effectiveness in treating ADHD. This will be followed by a look at a viable solution to the ADHD problem and an evaluation of the present obstacles to implementing this solution. In conclusion, it is expected that this study will have availed a new way through which ADHD can effectively be handled with minimal effects to the individual. Literature review The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that there are 5.2 million children aged 3-17 that have already been diagnosed with ADHD in United States. This means that 8.4% of all children have been diagnosed with ADHD (Centre for Disease Control and Prevention 2012). This points to increased diagnoses as a decade earlier lower rates had been reported with the overall diagnoses at the time being 6.9%. Based on gender, reported diagnoses indicate that boys are much more affected than girls, boys ADHD prevalence increased from 9.9% in 2000 to the current level of 12.3%, for g irls the rate in 2000 was 3.6% and this has also increased, though in a lesser magnitude to 5.5% (Centre for Disease Control and Prevention 2012). Another notable variable in the prevalence of ADHD is income levels, in 2000 the prevalence rates were the same across all income groups, but presently the prevalence has increased among children in low income families (100%-199%) as compared to families with income greater or equal to 200%. Lastly, ethnicity also seems to be a notable variable, in 2000 the prevalence rate among non-Hispanic white children ranged from 8.2%-10.6% while that of non-Hispanic black children ranged from 5.1%-9.5% indicating a higher prevalence among non-Hispanic white children (Centre for Disease Control and Prevention 2012). These variations seem to have presently leveled out within non-Hispanic white, and non-Hispanic black groups. Treatment for ADHD has proceeded on two fronts; biological and psychosocial interventions. Typically, the goal of biological tre atments is to reduce the children’s impulsivity and hyperactivity and to improve their attention skills (Barlow & Durand, 2009). Psychosocial treatments generally focus on broader issues such as improving academic prowess, decreasing troublesome activities, and improving social skills. Although these