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Many company benefits can help parents
meet needs of children with ADHD
Greater awareness needed to improve
use of available services
BOSTON - February 28, 2005 - Health care and related services
for children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
usually depend on the medical insurance and other programs offered
by their parents' employers. A new study from researchers at MassGeneral
Hospital for Children finds that many of the benefits offered by
employers could address the needs of parents of children with ADHD,
although they may be underutilized. Surveyed companies were interested
in helping these families meet their challenges, although few anticipated
being able to improve health insurance coverage. The study appears
in the February issue of the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral
Pediatrics.
"We were impressed at the interesting and broad range of benefits
that good companies are providing. But many of these services are
not being used by the employees who need them, so it becomes an
issue of helping connect employees with the available benefits,"
says James Perrin, MD, director of the MGH Center for Child and
Adolescent Health Policy, the study's leader.
The researchers surveyed 41 employers representing many fields in
four cities - Boston, Cleveland, Atlanta and Seattle. Participating
companies included both the largest employers in the communities
and several recognized as particularly family-friendly. Members
of the research team interviewed company representatives - primarily
human resources staff - asking about the benefits programs available
to employees, respondents' view of the needs of parents of children
with ADHD, and ideas for improving services.
Although only 36 percent of the respondents reported experience
or knowledge of ADHD, the survey found employers provide significant
services that could be helpful to affected families. These include
flexible work hours, family leave arrangements and child care assistance.
Most employers offer employee assistance programs, primarily targeted
to helping employees deal with psychological issues, or work/life
programs that focus on balancing work and family responsibilities.
Although these services were rarely cited as relevant to the care
of children with ADHD, survey respondents were interested in helping
families access needed services.
"Among the most important benefits that we heard about were
flexible work time arrangements - which can allow parents to attend
school conferences or take children to doctor's appointments - and
opportunities to learn about available services and to connect with
other parents," Perrin says. "These companies know that
providing good benefits can help improve workforce productivity
and reduce absenteeism. Parents need to investigate whether their
employers offer services that could help them."
Perrin also noted that he and his colleagues are working with major
employers to help them highlight available services on their internal
websites, develop support groups and link employees to support services
in the community. He is a professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical
School.
Co-authors of the report are Chris Fluet and Karen Kuhlthau, PhD,
of the MGH Center for Child and Adolescent Health Policy; Betsy
Anderson and Nora Wells of Family Voices, Boston and Algodones,
N.M.; Susan Epstein, MSW, New England SERVE; and Debby Allen, ScD,
and Carol Tobias, Boston University School of Public Health. The
study was supported by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau of the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the American Academy
of Pediatrics.
MassGeneral Hospital for Children, the pediatric service of Massachusetts
General Hospital, is the oldest provider of pediatric services in
Boston. It is consistently listed in the U.S. News and World Report
Guide to America's Best Hospitals and was ranked number 17 in the
2004 edition. Through its growing network of community-based facilities
and pediatricians, the hospital's excellent care is conveniently
accessible to families throughout the region.
Massachusetts General Hospital, established in 1811, is the original
and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. The MGH
conducts the largest hospital-based research program in the United
States, with an annual research budget of more than $450 million
and major research centers in AIDS, cardiovascular research, cancer,
cutaneous biology, medical imaging, neurodegenerative disorders,
transplantation biology and photomedicine. In 1994, MGH and Brigham
and Women's Hospital joined to form Partners HealthCare System,
an integrated health care delivery system comprising the two academic
medical centers, specialty and community hospitals, a network of
physician groups, and nonacute and home health services.
Media Contact: Sue
McGreevey, MGH Public Affairs
Physician Referral Service: 1-800-388-4644
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