ABSTRACT
Pediatricians are the first professionals most parents are likely to talk to when they have concerns about their children's behavior or development (Clarke-Stewart, 1978; Schroeder & Wool, 1979). They are thus in a unique position to provide preventive services, as well as to identify those children and families who are in need of mental health services. It has been estimated that 20% of pediatric primary care patients have biosocial or developmental
problems, which, for the pediatrician seeing 27 patients a day, translates into four patients per day (American Academy of Pediatrics, 1978). Al though the American Academy of Pediatrics (1978) recommended radical changes in pediatric training that would emphasize the biosocial aspects of patient care, the reality is that pediatricians rarely have the time or the resources to meet these needs.
