Screening Tool for Pediatric Bipolar Disorder in Primary Care

DESCRIPTION provided by applicant Unlike most medical conditions mental health disorders have no definitive diagnostic or screening tools e g blood tests x rays to verify thir presence or absence In primary care settings pediatricians and family medicine doctors often lack confidence in their ability to screen for significant mental health problems such as pediatric bipolar disorder and refer out for most mental and behavioral health concerns Unfortunately many patients either do not follow through on referrals or do not receive appropriate referrals As a result both under referrals and over referrals are all too common in primary care settings Over referrals cause inefficiency while under referrals result in prolonged patient suffering burden on family members and a huge cost to society The Posterior Probability of Diagnosis PPOD Index has recently been proposed as a unique step towards solving these problems The PPOD Index is a Bayesian method that quantifies the probability that a patient meets or exceeds a diagnostic threshold for a particular disorder The method has two advantages over traditional screening approaches First the PPOD Index is based on a patientandapos s individual pattern of symptoms rather than on traditional symptom counts Second the method quantifies the likelihood that a patient meets criteria for a particular diagnosis in probabilistic terms The goal of this SBIR project is to develop and test a Bayesian screening tool using PPOD Index software for tablets In Phase I we will focus prototype development and testing on pediatric ages bipolar disorder a disorder that is particularly likely to be misdiagnosed resulting in tremendous costs for the person and society The proposed software system will enhance screening to improve the precision and quality of referrals for pediatric bipolar disorder in primary care settings The following three specific aims will be accomplished during Phase I create a fully functioning working prototype of a Bayesian screening tool for pediatric bipolar disorder using PPOD Index software for tablets to run on a tablet PC perform usability testing with physicians and families and assess the product value innovation feasibility acceptability and quality The technology will have far reaching generalizability to a variety of patient populations We envision a final product Phase II that will include modules for other mental health disorders such as ADHD Autism and PTSD By improving the efficiency and screening of mental health problems in primary care settings we can significantly improve the mental health outcomes of children and their families alleviating suffering burden on families and cost to society PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE In primary care settings pediatricians and family medicine doctors often lack confidence in their ability to screen for significant mental health problems such as pediatric bipolar disorder Many families are over referred while others who need good referrals do not receive them In response to this problem this SBIR project aims to develop a standalone Bayesian screening tool in the form of a tablet PC for pediatric bipolar disorder that will enhance the accuracy and efficiency of screening in primary care settings