What is the difference between CAMHS and CASBAT???

[car2]

Hi all, sorry to sound dumb but Im finding posts relating to camhs everywhere but nothing about casbat (communication and social behaviour assessment team). My son has just turned 6 (yesterday) and has been refered to them and I am currently waiting for assessments from them. I have sent off all the details they asked for from pregnancy till now and loads of tick boxes etc.

Dan will see his paed for the second time on 17th may. Im presuming we are right at the start of the diagnosis process. Any advice would be welcomed. <'>

Many thanks

caroline

[Karen A]

Hi Camhs are the child and adolescent mental health sevice.Psychiatric bit of NHS for children and teenagers.Camhs are involved with assessment for some children and teenagers- usually older children or teenagers.However Child Development Teams also do assessments-multi-professional groups looking at child development issues.In some areas procedures are different and psychologists,paediatricians and Speach and Language therapists may be involved in various groups.I hope that helps rather than making you more confused. Karen.

[mum22boys]

Hi,

 

As already mentioned CAMHS is Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service. Now it appears to me that depending on where you live depends on what CAMHS actually do. In our area I would say not a lot!!! They don't assess for Autistic Spectrum Disorders they seem to be more mental health side of things, I think. In some areas it appers they do diagnose.I thought maybe they deal with ADHD but as M has now been referred to be assessed for ADHD it seems they don't do that either. In our area we have a Child Development Team who deal with children pre-school age, then they decide where to refer them on to.

You mentioned casbat, now we don't have that here but our equivelent is CDAC, Communication Disorder Assessment Clinic which i assume is the sort of thing your child will be assessed at, M was.

 

Hope that help.

 

mum22boys

[MichelleW]

I haven't heard of either CAMHS or casbat. Where I am, SALT refers child to paed, who then may refer child to a paed who has experience with autism. It is this paed who does assessment and may diagnose. However with my youngest a "Pre-school advisory team" are also supposed to be assessing him. This group may be similar to casbat. Whether the paeds are part of CAHMS or not, I don't know. But I haven't heard the term used in my dealings with the proffesionals.

 

I think it just depends on what area you are in.