Mental Health Clinic at Children First
The development and growth of children depends on their physical, emotional, and social well-being. Emotional and behavioral problems are estimated to affect one in every five children, but less than half of those children receive the help they need. Thus, Children First Pediatrics has developed the Mental Health Clinic to provide integrated care to children, teens and their families.
The Mental Health Clinic is staffed by Psychologists and Licensed Clinical Social Workers working with all ages from Pre-School through Adulthood and their families. Our goal is to collaborate with your child’s pediatrician to provide comprehensive assessment and treatment for common childhood issues in school, home, or primary care settings. Our mental health team works closely with your Primary Care Provider at Children First to be sure you are getting a complete medical home model of high quality care and follow up. Should your child need medication in addition to therapy, our Pediatricians can manage that for you.
Services of the Clinic include Psychoeducational testing and therapy for families, children, and adolescents for a wide range of behavioral and emotional concerns, including: Anxiety, Depression/Mood concerns, Attention problems, Anger control and behavior concerns, Adjustment to life stressors, School concerns, Sleep problems, Toileting problem, Autism Spectrum Disorders / Developmental Delay, Pain & Chronic Illness, Adherence to Medical Treatments & Pill Swallowing, Social skills deficits / Relationship problems, Healing from Trauma / Abuse, and Adoption/Foster Care issues.
Our mental health providers take an active, practical, and evidenced-based approach to treatment. Services begin with a thorough intake evaluation and initial recommendations are provided in the first one or two sessions. Additional psychological assessment or therapy services are scheduled based on your child’s presenting concerns and based on availability. In general, regular and consistent attendance to sessions by both your child and his/her parent(s) is necessary for therapy to be effective.
Some things to know before you schedule a therapy appointment:
- Our intake visits require a parent present regardless of the age of the child if under 18 yrs old.
- There is no grace period for your therapy/intake visits to stay on time for appointments after you.
- There is a no-show policy of $125 for failure to cancel your appointment more than 24hrs in advance.
- Our therapists bill to your mental health benefits through your insurance under Children First Pediatrics.
- Copay/Deductible may apply and are due at the time of the visit.
- Therapy notes are NOT posted on the patient portal or included in copies of medical records for the privacy protection of the patient.
- All therapy/intake appointments last for about 1 hr
Psychoeducational Testing at Children First Pediatrics:
Takes approximately 2-3 days for complete testing so your child will be missing at least 2 days of school
The parent should plan to be at the first day of testing for the first couple of hours as this part of the testing is done with the parent and the child.
The child should plan to bring lunch and snacks to the testing days.
Failure to cancel testing appointments more than 3 business days in advance will result in a no show fee of $500.
Testing, scoring and reporting could take up to a month after the testing part is complete.
Testing is most appropriate if:
-The child is between 6 years old and 16 years old
-Child needs confirming diagnosis of ADHD
-Child needs extra accommodations at school or needs an IEP at school
We will bill your insurance first for this testing. If the insurance covers this type of testing then copays or deductibles may apply. If your insurance does not cover this service the fee is $3000 with a payment plan possible. Please note, that final reports from our psychologist will not be given until all payments are made.
Any other questions or if you would like to discuss if your child would benefit from this testing, please call our office as speak to your Pediatrician or our Administrator, Rachel Bakersmith.
To schedule an appointment, call 301-990-1664 , press x111 for appointments.
Our Mental Health Clinic Providers:
Jennifer Blair, Psy. D.
Sara Feldman, LCSW-C
Holly English, LCSW-C
Maria Kagin, LCSW-C
