A Word from the President of The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Robert Hendren, D.O.

Child and adolescent psychiatry begins with a profound respect for your child and a deep regard for the task of parenting. The AACAP and its members are committed to:

• Universal access to care, regardless of treatment setting, for all children and adolescents, including comprehensive psychiatric evaluation and access to appropriate duration and type of treatment
• Expanded research efforts that will lead to prevention and treatment programs that will enhance the lives of children and adolescents affected by mental illnesses
• Integrated services that will meet the needs of the whole child and family within a community system of care, including home and schools settings.

On this website, we have brought together over a thousand pages of information for parents, caregivers, policy and decision makers, and other medical professionals as a gateway to the latest information on emotional, behavioral, developmental, and mental disorders that affect children, adolescents, and their families. The site includes all of the 90 plus Facts for Families fact sheets that provide concise and up-to-date information on parenting issues and psychiatric disorders, legislative alerts, transcripts of testimony before the Senate and House, research and fellowship opportunities, meeting information, and updates on major events affecting children and children's mental health.

We invite you to spend time on the website and let us know if there is other information that also would be valuable to you.