General practitioners and school psychologists: An underused collaboration.

BACKGROUND

General Practitioners (GPs) play a vital role in the management of the social, emotional and behavioural health of children and adolescents. Best practice usually requires collaboration with a broad range of other medical and allied health professionals, to bring about optimal outcomes for patients and their family.

OBJECTIVE

This article describes the specific role of a school psychologist and outlines various ways that GPs and school psychologists can collaborate in the assessment and management of school‑aged patients.

DISCUSSION

Given the importance of school in the social and emotional development of children and adolescents, school psychologists should be considered a valuable partner for GPs when caring for young people.